Suspend My Disbelief
by Epic Laughter
Summary: After Dastardos' disappearance, the Village is more relaxed and happy than ever. But just what is the reaper up to? Sequel to The Fall.
1. Prologue

"Leena? Leena, come on, we're gonna be late!" Seedos knocked on the door to Leena's tree house, rocking back and forth nervously. He was wearing an orange tux covered in blue and white swirls. Not exactly the most fashionable thing, but it was the cheapest tux he could scrounge up. Even then, he had to save for a whole entire month just to buy it!

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" Leena ran towards the door, her chunky heels clicking on her wooden floor. She swung the door open, her chest heaving, silently thanking God that she didn't trip and tear her dress in her hurry.

Seedos gasped when he saw his girlfriend and stumbled back a few steps, nearly falling off of Leena's deck. Leena looked _stunning _in a sky blue gown covered with shimmering sequins arranged in a traditional Piñata Island pattern. Leena's usually unruly hair was fastened into two little buns that were adorned with white flowers. When she saw how Seedos was looking at her, she blushed and looked at her feet. "Seedos… you don't have to stare."

"Leena, you look prettier than the bride could ever _dream_ of being!" Seedos opened his arms and beamed at Leena.

"Oh, you're such a flatterer…" Leena hugged Seedos and gave him a little kiss on the mouth of his mask. "Come on, let's get going! Avalon will have my head if I'm late for something as fancy as a wedding…"

"Yeesh, you're right…!" Seedos shimmied halfway down the ladder before jumping off. "Come on! We've gotta go fast!"

Leena carefully descended the ladder, grabbed Seedos' hand, and the two of them took off to the eastern side of town. There was a lavishly decorated wedding chapel there, barely touched since the wedding of Lottie and Willy so many years ago. Willy and some hired Helpers had restored it when news of Fannie's marriage to Flavius Pendragonache spread throughout town. Now the chapel sparkled like new and the crowd inside of it were buzzing with excitement about Fannie's nuptials.

"Good morning!" Petula greeted Leena and Seedos at the door. She was Fannie's maid of honor, but judging by the glow surrounding her, one would think that she was the one getting married. She would be lying if she said she wasn't feeling proud as a Peckanmix about being chosen to be the maid of honor! "Leena, you look _great!"_ Petula gave Seedos a once-over and bit her lip. "Uh, hi, Seedos. Thanks for coming! Fannie appreciates all her guests!"

"Thanks, Petula… I guess," With a shrug, Seedos linked his arm through Leena's and they entered the chapel. "That's her way of telling me I look horrible," Seedos whispered to Leena, who giggled.

As soon as the two of them entered the church, the sweet smell of flowers hit them like a truck. The chapel was absolutely _covered_ in potted floral arrangements and rose petals covered the carpet that went through the aisles. At the front of the chapel was a priest, wearing a Cocoadile mask, which Leena couldn't help thinking wasn't well suited to his profession. Next to the priest was Flavius, Fannie's husband-to-be, looking confident and happy. He was flanked by three groomsmen that weren't from the Village. They had the air of the city around them and didn't have a single shred of nervousness in their expressions. In fact, they looked kind of bored… didn't they care that their friend was getting married?

Seedos and Leena sat near the aisle, next to Avalon and Yen. Avalon's arm was very close to being completely healed, but it still hurt, so her elegant attire was marred by a sling. Yen, wearing a sober black tux with subtle dark grey patterns, had his arm around her and his head on her shoulder. This was the first wedding he ever went to, and he was happy he got to take the girl of his dreams as his date!  
"'Ello, Leena," Avalon waved her good hand and gave her a pale smile.

Seedos leaned over and smirked at Avalon. "Still mad your cousin is marrying Fannie?"

Avalon's expression darkened. "Shut up, yew."

Seedos snickered and leaned back. He knew it.

"Did you guys know Fannie asked me to play piano for the wedding?" Yen sat up, moving his hair away from his eyes. "I told her I would, but only if she paid me, so she changed her mind."

"Wouldn't that be a great opportunity, though?" Seedos cocked his head to the side.

"I didn't know you played piano, Yen!" Leena folded her hands under her chin, looking quite amazed.

"It's not a well known fact, I have no idea how Fannie even knew," Yen shrugged his shoulders. "But they got Eddie instead, and you know how he is. I bet he'll be too busy crying to even play the piano properly."

Avalon couldn't help chuckling. She glanced over to the grand piano and saw that Eddie was already dabbing his eyes, his now heavily pregnant mother hovering over him like a Dragumfly and attempting to calm him down. "I bet 'is performance will be… interesting."

The pastor gestured to Eddie, who jumped and whipped around, his tears disappearing. Eddie's mom waddled as fast as she could back to her seat in the front row and Eddie began playing Piñata Island's lively version of the bridal march.

The first person to walk down the aisle was little Babochka, skipping down the aisle and tossing flower petals everywhere. She was the only little girl in the Village, so she was more than happy to have no competition for her role in the wedding. She would have fought her tooth and nail for the position of flower girl.

Next were the bridesmaids, led by the confident Petula, who moved elegantly down the aisle like the wedding was all about her. Behind her was Melody, the person who helped Fannie write her musical that was still going strong in Poprockolis, and Leafos, Storkos, and Gretchen.

Patch gave Leafos a shy little wave as she walked by and she coyly winked at him.

"YEAAAAH! THAT'S MY GIRL!" Yoto leapt out of his chair when Storkos walked by, and Bart pulled him down by the tails of his suit coat and covered his mouth.

Finally, it was the bride's turn. Fannie wore the oversized, sheer veil that was a tradition for Piñata Island weddings and a white dress that sparkled in the light. Her beautiful outfit was marred by her oversized mailbox mask, as always. Her father, a short, stout man with a mustache that any man would be proud of, choked back tears as he led his little girl down the aisle.

Fannie finally reached Flavius and he took her hands, smiling at her as she stood across from him.

"You look beautiful," he whispered, which made Fannie blush a deep red.

The two of them made their vows and soon it was time for the kiss. Fannie threw her sheer veil over Flavius' head and the two of them removed their masks beneath it. They shared a kiss, the audience clapping as they saw their silhouettes come together under the veil.

The happy couple put their masks back on and the pastor raised his arms. "I present to you Mr. and Mrs. Flavius Pendragonache!"

After the giggly newlyweds made their way down the aisle, everyone started slowly filing out of the church, heading to the P-Factor hall for the reception.

"How'd I do?" Storkos asked, flying next to Yoto and slipping an arm around his waist. "Did I do well?"

"You looked _awesome!"_ Yoto gave Storkos a great big kiss. "You were a natural up there!"

"Whew, that's good…" Storkos sighed, resting a hand on her stomach. "I've been nauseous all day. It must be nerves…"

"You? Nervous?" Yoto blinked, his brow furrowing with concern. "Are you okay?"

Storkos waved Yoto off. "Psh, don't worry, I'm fine! I've just… never been in a wedding before. I'll feel better if I eat something. Hopefully."

"Take it easy, okay?" Yoto whispered words of encouragement to his girlfriend as they left the chapel.

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Leafos was taking a brief siesta on a bench in the village square, sighing and massaging her legs. She had practiced walking in heels for far too long last night and had pulled a muscle. She hoped she didn't waddle down the aisles like a brain damaged Pengum…

"Luh-Leafos…?"

Leafos knew that voice. She looked up to see Doc Patch, who was shakily holding out a bouquet of roses, snapdragons, and lilies. "I guh-got these for you. As a congratulations… and a thuh-thank you."

"A thank you…?" Leafos blushed as she took the flowers. Patch must have asked Storkos or someone about what kind of flowers Leafos liked… there's no way he could have gotten all her favorites just by guessing.

"Fuh-for helping me. With work. And buh-being a guh-good friend…" Patch shuffled his feet. "Now that Dastardos is… you know, gone, things are a lot easier. He used to threaten me at night and write me notes saying to suh-stay away from yuh-you. I duh-didn't tell you because I thought you would wuh-worry…"

"Patch! You shouldn't keep those things from me!" Leafos rose from the bench, shaking a finger at the doctor. "What if he hurt me just to make you miserable?!"

"I don't… I duh-don't think he wanted to _hurt_ you…" Patch bit his lip. "I think he luh-_liked_ you, Leafos."

Leafos wrinkled her nose. "I _really_ doubt that. He never so much as _looks_ at me when we're in the same place at the same time. He probably just wanted to make you miserable."

"You're puh-probably right…" Patch twirled his index fingers together. "Well… I guh-guess… we don't have to worry about him anymore, huh?"

"You're right…" Leafos let out a sigh of relief. "He's gone. Probably for good. No one's seen him for a _month."_

"Let's… let's not think about Dastardos anymore…" Patch smiled at the slightly shorter girl and she smiled back up at him.

"C'mere, you big lug."

With that, Leafos and Patch shared a kiss in the middle of the Village Square.

Avalon and Yen were walking by just in time to see that and Avalon felt her heart sink into her stomach. For some reason, every time she saw a couple together, it made her stomach twist and turn. There was absolutely no reason for that. She wasn't jealous… she had Yen, after all, but something felt off. Something was missing. She hadn't felt one hundred percent ever since the night Dastardos yelled at her before running off and disappearing forever.

Avalon resisted the urge to slap herself. _No, Avalon. This isn't about 'im. Don't be silly!_

"Why the long face, Avalon?" Yen moved closer to Avalon and took her hand, offering her a genuine smile. "You never struck me as the type who would get emotional at weddings…"

Avalon froze for a moment, but decided to roll with it. "Yeah, well, I'm full of surprises," she said, giving Yen a forced grin. She felt like someone punched her heart. _God, that sounded like something Dastardos would say…_

She couldn't tell Yen the _real_ reason she was feeling so awful. If he knew, he'd probably flip out… he had expressed his happiness that Dastardos was gone on so many occasions. Avalon had to swallow her pride and enjoy the wedding reception… after all, she didn't want Yen getting suspicious…

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The reception was quiet and pretty uneventful, apart from Lottie getting completely sloshed and passing out right in the middle of the dance floor. A few hours after the reception, everyone in the Village got the same message sent to their Alert Systems:

_*YOU'RE INVITED!*_

_Where: Eddie Lizard's home_

_When: Next Sunday at 5:00 PM_

_Why: To celebrate the peace in the Village!_

_I, Eddie Lizard, am throwing a party with the aid of Doc Patchingo. We're celebrating the lack of chaos and disorder in the Village since you-know-who disappeared all those weeks ago! Come on down and join us, we'd love to have you! Send your RSVPs to me, Eddie Lizard! Don't even pretend you don't know my number._

"Another party? So soon?" Leena blinked at her Alert System.

"Leena, you really haven't been on Piñata Island for long, have you?" Seedos snickered. "Most people take any excuse they can to party it up. It's in our blood!"

"Well, I know I'm going," Leena flipped her Alert System shut and she looked quite a bit saddened. "After what Dastardos did to Crispy, I _definitely_ want to celebrate him going away. I hope he never, _ever_ comes back!"

"Join the club," Seedos sneered. He couldn't believe he ever liked that idiot. "I'm surprised Eddie's not having it at the P-Factor hall… I don't think I've ever even been to his house!"

"I'm pretty excited…" Leena admitted, turning a little pink. "I wonder if it's bigger than Avalon's place…?" she thought aloud, stroking her chin. "Guess we'll find out! Hee, now I'm all excited!" Leena giggled.

"Knowing Dastardos, he'll catch wind of this and come crash the party," Seedos snorted.

"Oh God…I hope not…" The very idea of that gave Leena chills.

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Dastardos wasn't in the mood for party crashing.

After what seemed like an eternity of wandering through jungles, swamps, and deserts, he came across a commune of gardens down by the beach. The gardens surrounded a cute little port town and, surprisingly, all of the gardeners were pretty young ladies. Dastardos took great delight in taunting them, but it didn't help him forget the incident back home. He barely slept anymore; whenever he did he had nightmares where he relived Avalon's call to him. Her cruel, heartless words echoed in his head whenever he let his mind wander too much. Dastardos tried to keep busy twenty four hours a day, seven days a week in hopes of keeping her out of his head. If he stayed idle for too long, his thoughts would go right back to Avalon. He had to stay busy… he couldn't think about her.

Dastardos' favorite hobby was spying on the girls in the gardening community. The more he learned about them, the easier it was to press their buttons. He'd never forget the look on a shy, blonde gardener's face when he revealed that he knew all about her little shrine to the local legend, Eddie Lizard. The gardener had ordered a Dastardos shovel a few weeks back, and the reaper threatened that he'd tell _everyone_ about her creepy shrine if she so much as tapped him with the shovel.

If Dastardos had been in better condition, he would have thought that to be great fun. But all he felt lately was… numb.

"Stardos, you look weird…" Magnar observed when Dastardos floated into their brand new hollow tree. It was way more cramped than the last one and had no furniture, apart from a waterlogged, faded cushion that washed up on the beach a few days after they arrived. No matter how much time passed, that stupid thing never seemed to fully dry. Magnar preferred sleeping on the floor than sleeping on that thing.

"How so?" Dastardos asked as he removed his mask, revealing that his cheeks were more sunken in than ever and that he had dark, smeary circles under his sunken eyes.

"You're all…" Magnar struggled to find the right word. "I can see through you."

"What…?" Dastardos looked at his hands and his eyes widened when he saw Magnar right through them. "That's odd… oh well, I can still pick things up so maybe I'll just scare the girls even more…" Sighing, Dastardos sat down on the damp cushion and patted his thigh. Magnar slowly made his way over and hopped up onto his lap.

"You're cold, too…" Magnar snuggled into Dastardos, a look of determination on his face as he tried to warm up his master.

"It's not a big deal, I can't feel it…" Dastardos leaned against the wooden wall, stroking Magnar's back.

Magnar sighed a bit._ "It's not a big deal…" _Magnar had been hearing that from Dastardos a _lot_ in the past month. Had it been a month…? It felt like longer.

"Oh, God! My Pretztail!" a high pitched voice squealed outside.

"Ahh, that's my cue!" Dastardos placed Magnar on the floor, raising his hand in the air. The Whacking Stick appeared and he twirled it around. "Time to get you dinner, Magnar!"

Without saying goodbye, Dastardos took off into the twilit commune.

Magnar sighed and sulked off into a corner. No matter how much Dastardos insisted that nothing was wrong, Magnar knew. Whenever Dastardos slept, he would whimper or scream in his sleep. Not to mention Dastardos hadn't laughed in a long, long time.

Magnar hoped Dastardos would feel better soon…


	2. The Party

"This is so exciting!" Patch exclaimed as he wobbled on top of a ladder. He was hanging streamers all around the enormous foyer of Eddie's mansion, getting ready for the party that evening. "I never got to throw a party myself…!"

"You're just a co-host this time," Eddie, who was holding the ladder, smiled up at Patch's back. "But soon I'm sure you'll be throwing your own parties! You'll be a regular social butterfly, Patch!"

Patch blushed and fumbled with the streamer a bit before he succeeded in putting it over one of Eddie's little wall lamps. "I-I can't see that ever happening… my house is far too small!"

If one could call it a house. Patch lived in a little three room apartment attached to his clinic, in case someone came in during the night with an emergency. His work was never done! He was happy he had an assistant now…

"Good thing you have me!" Eddie winked at Patch. "I think that area is sufficiently streamered. Get on down here!"

Patch carefully made his way down the ladder, biting his lip and trying his best not to look down. Dang, why was Eddie's ceiling so high…? Would people even be able to see the streamers?

"With that, I think we're done!" Eddie patted Patch on the shoulder when he finally reached the bottom. "It's beautiful…!" Eddie's eyes sparkled as he looked over the parlor.

Eddie's home was now decorated with sparkling streamers, enormous balloons, and beautiful floating lanterns. _"It's mood lighting,"_ Eddie had told Patch earlier as he sent them up towards the ceiling, waggling his eyebrows. Eddie's furniture had been moved aside to make room for tables draped with gorgeous, luxurious tablecloths. At the very center was a round buffet table with plates set out in preparation for the caterer, who Eddie had hired all the way from the city. At yet another table was a chocolate fountain that was impossibly large.

_Rich people sure like big things…_ Patch thought, blinking in confusion.

Eddie sighed fondly. "I'm so excited that we're able to throw this party, Patch! I mean, I never thought we'd have peace in this Village! Between Dastardos killing sick piñatas and Pester kidnapping and/or destroying everything he can get his greasy hands on, we had our hands full…" Eddie folded his arms and shook his head, his violet bangs whooshing with the motion. "But now Dastardos is gone… and probably dead! And Pester has barely been doing anything without his lackey to boss around!" Eddie laughed triumphantly and pulled Patch into a big hug. "You must be the happiest person of all!"

"Eddie…" Patch couldn't help chuckling. Eddie's enthusiasm was infectious! "You have _no idea."_

"You seem a lot less stressed!" Eddie let Patch go and leaned forward, blinking his great big eyes before looking Patch up and down. "You're much less round shouldered and you hardly even stutter anymore!"

"I don't…?" Patch felt his throat, as if that would somehow give him the answer to his newfound speech prowess.

"Mmm-hmm! You practically _ooze_ charisma now! Dastardos leaving did _wonders_ for you, Patch!" Eddie sidled up to Patch and elbowed him in the ribs. "I think your new assistant slash girlfriend plays a part in that too!"

Patch turned bright red and looked down at his feet. "H-how did you know?"

"Ahh, there's the stutter," Eddie giggled. "Come on, I can tell by the way you look at each other. It's written alllll over your masks!"

"Try to keep it a secret, okay?" Patch urged, resisting the impulse to bite his nails. "I don't think Jardiniero would be too big on his daughter dating a mainlander, let alone being involved in an office romance…"

"Your secret's safe with me," Eddie mimed zipping his lips. "Besides, you two are total cuties!"

Patch blushed again and sheepishly smiled. No one ever said that to him before…! It was… pretty amazing.

"Go change into your tux, Patch, the party's starting in two hours!" Without saying goodbye, Eddie took off up the grand staircase, a spring in his step. This party was going to be _ah-mazing!_

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Meanwhile, the coastal village was bustling as the girl gardeners laughed with each other and traded gardening tips. Every day at four PM, they would all gather together to talk about their days and help each other out.

Every day at four PM, Dastardos would hide in a tree and spy on them.

"Ameena, you look _gorgeous_ today!" a caramel-haired young woman gaped at a dark skinned girl with a pink Tigermisu mask. Ameena was the latest addition to the commune, having moved there from close to the Village. Dastardos didn't like her much; she always looked at him funny. Maybe they met… Dastardos didn't know. The masked faces of all of the gardeners he reaped from blended together after a while.

"Oh, please," Ameena waved her off. "Seiko, do you want something from me?"

The other girls burst into tittery giggles. Seiko looked at her feet, blushing a bright pink. "How did you know…?"

Ugh, this was _soooo_ boring! Dastardos rested his bony hands against his cheeks, pursing his lips. Why didn't these girls ever talk about anything interesting or scandalous? Back home, everyone talked about all sorts of things! Like secrets or rumors or their opinions on the villains… the latter was Dastardos' favorite. He would tell Pester all about what they said and they'd have a laugh together. That was one of the rare times they got along…

_Eugh._ Thinking of Pester made Dastardos' stomach turn. Thinking of his fat, sweaty presence and his _unique_ smell of piss and alcohol wasn't exactly a mood lifter.

_Relax, Dastardos…_ Dastardos exhaled, rubbing his temples. _He's out of your life now. He'll __never__ find you here. Just focus on these stupid girls…_

"What do you make of the new guy?" the artist gardener asked. Dastardos' ears perked up; things were getting interesting!

"He's scary…!" Another girl's voice quivered as she shook. "Every time I see him I feel like passing out…!"

"Oh, he's a big goof," Ameena snorted. "Before I moved here, I saw him pop up out of a lake and tell Doctor Patch that he was a gorgeous mermaid before he went flying off. He's probably on drugs or something."

"That seems about right…" Sniggered a blue haired girl in one of the most obnoxious outfits Dastardos had ever seen.

"Whatever he's smoking, I want some," The artist girl smirked to herself as she turned her attention to her sketchbook. Dastardos poked his head further out of the tree to get a peek at what she was drawing. What the heck… was that _him?_

It was pretty good, actually. But… all skill aside, something was _off._

That gauntness… that emanciated shape… that somber, hopeless expression… that wasn't what Dastardos saw the last time he saw his reflection!

_Wait… when __**was**__ the last time he saw his reflection?_

Dastardos raked his brain as he tried to figure that one out. It felt like _months_ ago… he had peeped at himself in a pond to check if his mask was cracked after a visit to Eddie's garden ended in misery. Dastardos wondered if he really looked like that, or if Stupid Artist Girl thought he did…

Dastardos wasn't going to sit around and think about it. He needed to find a reflective surface _right now!_

Without even thinking, Dastardos flew out of the tree, through the newly baffled and horrified crowd of girls, and flew through the wall of the nearest house.

He wound up in someone's bedroom that was very, very pink and had a little squish faced Kittyfloss sleeping on the bed. Dastardos didn't take in the room's horribly girly sights and instead opted to fly towards the vanity.

Dastardos' jaw dropped when he got a load of his reflection.

He was completely ragged. His hair was in complete disarray and it stuck out from all angles. His clothes were even more wrinkled than usual and his hands looked bonier than ever. Dastardos lifted up his shirt and saw that his ribs could be clearly seen through his translucent skin. Before he could stop himself, Dastardos tore off his mask and paled significantly when he saw his uncovered face.

His eyes were swollen and sunken in, with the darkest smears Dastardos had ever seen underneath them. His cheekbones were more pronounced than ever, and his lips were dry and cracked. Not to mention he was growing paler and more see-through by the day…

But that wasn't what bothered Dastardos. What made Dastardos nearly snap right then and there was the glint in his eyes, the same starved, evil, soulless glint that he had to look at every single day until he ran away.

Dastardos staggered backwards, his eyes widening. "I… I look just like Pester…!"

Dastardos felt like someone stabbed him right in the heart. It was then that he _knew._

"I… I really _am_ Pester's son…!"

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Meanwhile, back at the Village, everyone had gathered for Eddie and Patch's party, laughing and enjoying each other's company. The room was absolutely buzzing with joy; Dastardos leaving the Village was a cause for celebration!

Sahari was cheerfully laughing with Eddie; Sparcticus watched her across the room with a grim look on his mask. Yen was sitting at a table reading while Avalon talked to Flavius. Flavius must have been going on about his wedding night or something because Avalon looked like she was ready to projectile vomit all over everyone.

Seedos and Leena were attempting to dance together, constantly stepping on each other's feet and nearly falling over. They were having fun, though, and that was what mattered. Leena's mood had been through the roof since Dastardos left; she honestly and truly hoped he was alive and miserable. Death would be too clean and easy of a solution for a person like him. Leena still thought about Crispy every day… if Dastardos ever came back, she would borrow Eddie's Dastardos shovel and break his nose!

"Hey, sis," Leafos sat down next to Storkos, who had been staying at a table for most of the party. "Are you okay? I expected you to be flying all over the party, talking to everyone!"

"I'm fine! I've just been a little dizzy…" Storkos rubbed her temples. "I've been feeling off lately; oh God, I better not be getting sick! I can't afford to miss work… all of the piñatas would be so disappointed!"

"Don't push yourself, sis!" Leafos urged. "I just want you to be safe! Don't work if you feel like you can't!"

Storkos snorted and jerked her head towards Langston, who was conversing with an _extremely_ irritated looking Jeffe. "You think the frog will let me get time off? He doesn't seem to understand that humans can't be cured of sickness with just one little spoonful of miracle medicine."

Leafos frowned and stroked her chin as she thought. After a few moments, her eyes lit up with mischief. "Hey, why don't you sic Yoto on him if you get worse? He loves you; he wouldn't back down for _anything!"_

"W-wait, how'd you know about Yoto and me?!" Storkos blushed, holding up her hands. "Dad doesn't know, does he? PLEASE tell me Dad doesn't know!"

Leafos threw her head back and laughed. "Of _course_ he doesn't! I know better than to tell him! I can tell by the way you look at each other; it's true love for sure," Leafos sighed, folding her hands under her chin.

Storkos breathed a sigh of relief. "Don't go spreading it around… but yes, I love him very much." Storkos glanced at the door, furrowing her brow. "But he's really, really late. I hope he shows…"

"That silly boy probably fell asleep," Leafos giggled, putting her arm around her sister. "He might be sweet to you, but he's lazy!"

"I happen to know he's quite hard working!" Storkos frowned at her sister, who giggled.

"Relax, Storkos, I'm just pulling your leg," Leafos squeezed her shoulder affectionately. "I'm sure he'll be here soon. He wouldn't want to miss seeing you in such a pretty dress!"

"Gee, I sure hope so!" Storkos nodded, giving Leafos a pale smile. She couldn't let her sister know her dizziness was getting worse by the minute. Leafos had to relax and enjoy the party… she shouldn't be worrying about her sister!

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Yoto finally arrived about fifteen minutes later, wearing a tie that was tied completely wrong. He made a beeline for Storkos and sat in the chair next to her, smiling at her dreamily.

"How's my favorite girl feeling tonight?" he asked, giving her a cheeky wink. Storkos smiled in spite of her condition and put her hands over Yoto's.

"I could be better… I wish I could go out and mingle, but I'm not feeling so hot…" Storkos shook her head, sighing a bit. "I'm really dizzy and my head is killing me…"

"Oh…" Yoto's brow furrowed in concern. Storkos could practically see a lightbulb over his head as his eyes lit up. "Wait! Maybe Yen carries around aspirin…! Wait one second, sweetheart, I'll be right back!" Yoto leaned over and kissed Storkos on the cheek before running over to Yen.

"Bro, I need a favor!" Yoto clapped his hands together and dropped to his knees, looking up at his brother with his eyes huge and sad.

Yen let out the longest, most drawn out sigh Yoto had ever heard. "What?" he said, not taking his eyes off his book.

"Come on, Yen, I did you a giant favor a month ago, you can do me one!" Yoto stuck out his lower lip at his brother who jumped and glared at Yoto.

"Don't talk about that, Avalon is _right there!"_ Yen hissed. Yoto glanced over at Avalon, who glanced back, her brow furrowed. Yoto gulped. He might have to do some fast talking later…

"Sorry…" Yoto whispered. "Do you have aspirin?"

"…that's it? That's all you need?" Yen looked at Yoto in sheer disbelief. "I thought you were going to ask for money or for me for distract Storkos while you get ready to propose." Yen shifted so he could access his messenger bag more easily. He reached inside and pulled out a bottle of pills, handing it to his very, very grateful brother. "Now take this and keep your trap shut about you-know-what."  
"Thanks, Yen, you da best!" Yoto patted his brother on the shoulder. "Wait… I actually didn't expect you to have this. Why do you?"  
Yen smirked, closing his book and looking around. He gestured for Yoto to move closer and said: "Can you keep a secret?"

"As long as it isn't about murder," Yoto whispered back.

"Avalon and I… well…" Yen crossed two of his fingers together. "We've been quite intimate lately. I figured having those around for pain relief would be a good idea…"

"Eeew, Yen! Eeeeew!" Yoto made a cross with his fingers. "Back, demon!"

Yen couldn't help laughing. "What? It's perfectly natural! You had sex with Storkos, didn't you?"

Yoto frowned intensely. "Yeah, but… she's not Avalon. She's like my sister, you know! You had sex with our sister!"

Yen slammed a palm into his forehead. "Yoto, please go."

"Will do, El Grosso!" With that, Yoto ran back to his girl.

Meanwhile, Avalon had been listening in to the whole conversation. What the heck was that… favor Yen asked Yoto to do? And it was a month ago? That was the same time as…

A huge lump formed in Avalon's throat as she paled significantly.

"Are you okay?" Flavius asked, standing on his toes so he could get a better look at his much taller cousin's face. "You look really pale, Lonnie…"

"I… I need to talk to someone, sorry," Avalon moved past Flavius and headed towards Yoto, her hands clenched into fists.

"Feeling better yet?" Yoto was so caught up in Storkos that he didn't notice Avalon approaching.

Storkos giggled. "Yoto… it takes a long time for these pills to kick in. Give me a minute, okay?"

Avalon cleared her throat loudly, folding her arms and tapping her foot.

"Huh?" Yoto looked over to Avalon and saw that she looked quite miffed. Yoto made sure not to make eye contact in case she could see the fear in his eyes. "Uh… hey, Avvie, 'sup?"

"Yoto Yoa, can I talk to yew?" Avalon's voice was full of suspicion. She was squinting at Yoto so hard that Yoto could swear she was burning holes through his mask.

"Y…yeah. Sorry, Storkos, BRB," Yoto frowned at his ailing girlfriend before being dragged off by Avalon.

"Wot was all that about doing Yen a favor?" Avalon put her hands on her hips and leaned close to Yoto once he was sufficiently far away from everyone in the crowd.

"I didn't do Yen any favors…" Yoto clicked his fingers nervously, biting his lip and looking away from Avalon. Avalon instantly knew he was lying. Yoto always bit his lip when he was fibbing.

"Yew're lying through your teeth, Yoto. Why are yew lying to me?" Avalon tried to sound as un-threatening as possible, but secretly she was quite angry that Yoto would keep something from her. She thought he was her best friend…!

Yoto took a deep breath, doing his best to hold in his words. He couldn't help himself and they all came flooding out like verbal vomit.

"So Yen told me Dastardos hurt you and I was all pissed because I don't want anyone to hurt you and Yen said he caught Dastardos trying to finish you off before he chased him away so I was really worried and Yen said you two were friends or something which was weird but he needed my help to make Dastardos leave you alone so he asked me to do an impression of you and Alert Dastardos and tell him to go away because you were too scared to and I did and he was really upset and it was weird because I thought he was a total asshole and assholes don't get sad when people they threatened never want to see them again but I didn't care because I knew you'd be safe and Yen could sleep well at night and-MMMPH!"

Yoto got cut off when Avalon put her hand over his mouth.

"Wait… yew mean to tell me yew _tricked_ Dastardos?" Avalon couldn't believe it.

Yoto pried Avalon's hand off of his mouth. "What do you look so sad for?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. "I was only trying to protect you! I mean, he wanted to _kill_ you!"

"Yoto…" Avalon looked very serious, her spine straight and her expression dark. "Yen lied to you. Dastardos and I… we were actually friends."

"WHAT?!" Yoto exclaimed loud enough for the world to hear. Avalon grabbed him and covered his mouth again. Yoto pulled her hand off his mouth and scowled a bit. "Stop doing that!"

"Remember Niles, in Poprockolis?" Avalon asked.

"Yeah, he was a cool bro!" Yoto nodded vigorously, forgetting Avalon's confession. "Whatever happened to him?"

"That was Dastardos. In disguise," Avalon confessed, looking away from Yoto.

"WHAT?! NO WAY!" Avalon held up her hand threateningly again and Yoto covered his own mouth. In a whisper, he added: "So _that's_ how he won the wasabi contest… wait, did Dastardos actually _save_ you or did he make that up?"

"Yoto…'e did, but that's not the issue 'ere. Yew were deceived, so I'm not mad at yew. But… if yew could do me a favor, tell Yen I don't want to see him again for a while. We're _through."_

"W-what?" Yoto looked absolutely crushed. There goes all the chances of Avalon becoming his sister in law…

"Yew 'eard me. I 'ave to leave the party early. There's something I 'ave to do…" Without saying goodbye, Avalon took off, pushing through the crowd as she headed for the door.

"Avalon…" Yoto said to himself as he looked after his close friend. "What's _wrong_ with you?"

Yoto looked over at the still-reading Yen and bit his lip. He had to break the bad news… best to get it over with now before Yen saw Avalon again.

Right when Yoto began to walk over to his brother, he heard a _thump!_ and a high pitched shriek.

Yoto whipped around and felt his heart sink into his stomach.

Storkos was lying on the ground in a heap, completely unmoving.


	3. Patch's Verdict

Everything was blurry… she couldn't see anything.

_ "Sweetie! Sweetie! You're going to be okay!"_

God, Yoto sounded like he was underwater… Storkos could barely see or hear, she kept moving back and forth between blackness and blurred reality.

All Storkos could think was _Where's Yoto…? I can't hear…_

_ "Patch, can you get-"_

_ "Duh-don't worry, she'll be-"_

_ "I-it might be stress! I'm guh-going to do some tes-"_

_ "God DAMN it Patch, if anything happens to Storkos, I'm going to rip off your d-"_

_ "Doctor, no, not now! We have to take care of my sis-"_

_ "Oh Guh-God, these tests can't be right!"_

_ "What are they?"_

_ "No, Leafos, don't look!"_

After what seemed like an eternity of drifting in and out of consciousness, Storkos finally opened her eyes.

She was in Patch's clinic, no one in the room except for her and that stupid crinkly, paper covered cot. She was sweating like crazy and her head was still spinning, but she was alive.

"God…" Storkos sat up, stretching her sore limbs. Her head was throbbing; she must have hit it hard when she fell out of her chair. _I hope I didn't stop the party…_ a chill settled in Storkos' gut. _I'd hate to be a burden to everyone…_

"I heard movement in here," Patch opened the door and sheepishly smiled at Storkos. "Glad you're awake. A-are you feeling any better?" He asked, glancing nervously at his keyboard.

"Well, still a little dizzy and nauseous, but I'm awake, and that's what matters!" Storkos put her hands on her hips and grinned at Patch. "Do you know what happened?"

"I think I do…" Patch chewed on the end of his pen. "Cuh-can you tell me how you've been feeling lately? Yuh-Yoto said you haven't been feeling one hundred percent."

"I've had nausea, dizziness, mood swings…" Storkos sighed and frowned at Patch. "I don't get it, Doctor…" Storkos put her hands on her aching belly, her brow furrowing. "I _never_ get sick! I have a superhuman immune system! But I can't even make egg deliveries because I keep having to stop to throw up…" Storkos was happy she had barely eaten at all today; otherwise the mere mention of vomiting would have sent her into a retching fit.

"Well…" Patch looked at the results on his clipboard, nervously tapping his toes against the linoleum floor. "Considering your… condition, it's not that much of a surprise."

"What condition?" Storkos asked, tilting her head the slightest bit.

"Suh-Storkos…" Patch stood up straight and cleared his throat, doing her best to sound professional. "You're… well…" Patch's professional attitude disappeared as quickly as it had come. "I-I…I don't know how to say this…"

"Oh my God, am I going to die?!" Storkos' eyes bulged and her face turned as white as a sheet. "Is it cancer? I can't die, Patch! I have to take care of my family, and my boyfriend, and all the eggs-"

"Suh-Storkos!" Patch exclaimed, his face reddening with frustration. "You're nuh-not going to die!"

"What is it, then?" Storkos looked at Patch, her voice filling with dread. "You wouldn't be acting like this if it wasn't something terrible! Is it mono? Oh, God, what if I gave it to Yoto…" Storkos felt horrible. She didn't want Yoto to be sick too!

"I-it's not mono, Storkos!" Patch shook his head. "You're… well, yuh-you're… you're puh-puh… _pregnant."_ He squeaked the last word, hiding behind his clipboard, blinking his blue eyes at the catatonic Storkos.

"I'm WHAT?!" Storkos exclaimed, her hands flying to her mouth.

"She's WHAT?!" Yoto suddenly burst into the room. He had been waiting in the waiting room a few moments before, but as soon as he heard Storkos' cry of distress, he came running to find her.

"Yoto, Storkos is pregnant," Patch shook his head. "Yuh-you should have been more cuh-careful!"

"I can't believe this…" Storkos went pale, looking at her feet. "I always wanted to be a mother… but… not like _this._ Not out of wedlock! What's my father going to say?!"

"Storkos!" Yoto moved to the hospital bed, sitting next to Storkos and pulling her into an embrace. "Shh, calm down. I won't leave you. I won't _ever_ leave you. I love you! And I'm gonna love our baby, too!"

"Oh, Yoto…" Storkos hugged him even more tightly. "How could I have doubted you for even a second?"

"I-if you'll guh-give me a moment…" Patch chimed in, waving his pen around. "I can duh-do an ultrasound. I juh-just got a machine in, so…"

"Really?" Yoto raised his eyebrows and looked at Patch. "Yeah… bring it on! I wanna see my baby!"

"Yoto…" Storkos looked at him seriously. "I can tell you're excited, but _please…_ don't tell _anyone_ I'm pregnant. You know how this Village is; if one person knows, _everyone_ knows! If word got back to my dad, he'd probably die of a heart attack!"

"That's precisely why I asked Leafos to guh-go home!" Patch added, his face paling. "Sh-she's a great assistant and all, buh-but if she knows, _everyone_ knows. Buh-better safe than sorry!"

"Thanks, Patch…" Storkos sighed with relief, wiping a bit of sweat off her forehead.

"No problem," Patch smiled before making his exit and going to retrieve the ultrasound machine.

Storkos folded her hands in her lap, biting her lip and looking away from Yoto.

"Hey…" Yoto scooched a little bit closer to her. "Are you okay? You don't look so good…"

"I'm sorry, Yoto… this is just… a lot to take in," Storkos fiddled with her fingers nervously. "I just… can't believe this. Why didn't we… you know?"

"We got caught up in things," Yoto rubbed Storkos' shoulder, a weight pulling at his heart. "I was stupid. I thought we'd be fine… but Storkos, I have faith in us!" Yoto hopped off the cot and grabbed Storkos' hands, gazing intensely into her eyes. "We can turn this mistake around and make it into something wonderful!"

"I hope you're right…" Storkos and Yoto leaned in for a kiss, but they were interrupted when Patch crashed into the room, the ultrasound machine in tow.

Patch bent to plug it in and straightened up. He nodded at Storkos, who promptly laid down and pulled up her dress, revealing her belly, which hadn't begun to bulge at all yet.

Patch applied the ultrasound gel to Storkos' tummy and turned on the monitor. After a few moments, a tiny little fetus appeared on the screen.

"Oh!" Storkos exclaimed, her cheeks turning a bit pink as she craned her neck in an attempt to look at the monitor.

Yoto furrowed his brow and tilted his head really far to one side. "It… it looks like a fish! Why are we having a freak baby, Doctor?!" Yoto seemed absolutely panicked. Patch couldn't help himself; he laughed.

"The baby's only fuh-four weeks along, at most! It'll luh-look more like a normal buh-baby in a few months," he explained. Yoto let out a colossal sigh of relief.

"Is it a boy or a girl?" Storkos asked. Patch shook his head.

"Wuh-we can't tell at this stage. Buh-but babies are fuh-female for the first few months… if you want, you can call her a 'she' for now," Patch nodded. Storkos and Yoto looked at each other, positively ecstatic.

"We… we're going to have a baby, Yoto…" Storkos couldn't help herself. For the first time in a long while, she let tears fall from her eyes. Patch told her that the ultrasound was finished and she sat up, pulling Yoto close and giving him a kiss on his masked cheek.

"Oh, I hope she gets your looks…" Yoto sniggered. "Wouldn't want her to look like her daddy."

"I don't know…" Storkos rested her head on his shoulder. "I think she'd look great with green eyes like yours."

Patch scribbled some notes on his clipboard, shaking his head. Were couples always this sappy when they were about to have a kid…?

"Thanks, Patch," Yoto grinned at the doctor. "I'm so glad Storkos doesn't have a terrible disease!"

"I'm happy too," Patch admitted with a smile. "Buh-but, Storkos? Make sure you eat a balanced, healthy diet and read some books on parenting! The latter goes double fuh-for you, Yoto." Patch gave Yoto an aside glance.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" Yoto pouted and Storkos couldn't help giggling.

"Oh, and one more thing…" Patch looked nervous as he raked his brain trying to find the right words, chewing on the end of his pen. "Storkos…" he looked at her seriously. "Once you start to feel your pregnancy and it becomes visible, you absolutely, positively, cannot work. All that stress wouldn't be good for the baby or for you!"

"Wh-what?!" Storkos stomped a foot and glared. "I'm strong! I can take it! Someone has to take all the piñatas their eggs!"

"No, Storkos, uh-under no circumstances are you to work!" Patch held his clipboard in front of his face like a shield, shaking a bit. Storkos was scary when she was mad! "I'm sure Langston will uh-understand!"

"You don't know Langston like I know Langston," Storkos' glare became a look of concern. "He doesn't understand that people need to rest once in a while. I love my job to pieces, but…" Storkos cracked her neck. "It's hell on my energy."

"Don't worry, Storkos, if need be I can give Langston some…" Yoto mashed a fist into his palm. "…_persuasion."_

Storkos sighed. "Yoto, I love you, but only use violence if it's absolutely necessary."

"I have a feeling it will be…" Yoto took Storkos' hand and looked at Patch. "How much will it be for this visit?"

"N-no, it's on the house!" Patch nodded. "I… I'm just glad Suh-Storkos is okay. You're my friends, so… I'm just guh-glad to help…" Blushing, Patch looked down at his toes.

"Thanks, you're the _best!"_ Yoto clapped Storkos on the shoulder before skipping out the door. Secretly, he was glowing inside. He was going to have a child with the woman of his dreams!  
After they left, Patch sat down on the cot and buried his face in his hands. He knew Leafos would get on him about letting yet another human patient walk out without paying…

_VPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVP_

_I 'ave to find him! I 'ave to set this right!_

Those words seemed to repeat endlessly in Avalon's head as she ran out of the Lizard house, tore through the Village, and ran down the path, her eyes on the twisted tree not too far from the edge of Leena's garden.

As Avalon got closer, the slightest hints of hope began to well up inside of her. _Maybe 'e's been 'iding under a secret trapdoor! Or maybe 'e left a sign… anything would do! I just can't leave our friendship in tatters…_

That hope was soon shattered, though. What if Dastardos really _was_ dead? What would Avalon do then? Dastardos would have died completely alone and friendless, thinking that the only person who ever showed kindness to him completely and utterly _loathed _him. Or maybe…

The next thought that entered Avalon's head made her drop to her knees outside of Dastardos' tree. She felt like she was stabbed in the heart with a cold sharp sword.

_Wot… wot if 'e committed suicide because of me?_

The idea of being responsible for the death of a friend shattered Avalon's heart to bits. She buried her mask in her hands and shook, but absolutely refused to cry. Dastardos wouldn't want her to grieve. He'd go: _"Hey, Sugar Queen, get up and stop sobbin'! I'm not __that__ big a deal!"_

"I _hate_ Yen…" Avalon punched the dirt as she growled those words to no one in particular. "If I 'ad never gotten involved with 'im, none of this would 'ave 'appened and Dastardos wouldn't be dead!" Avalon hunched over again, her shoulders shaking.

"Dastardos is not dead," a soothing, mystical voice came from inside Dastardos' tree.

"Wh-wot?" Avalon raised her head and her jaw dropped when she saw what was in front of her.

None other than Farrah Shadowing moved aside the curtains at the entrance of Dastardos' dead tree, stuck out an ample hip, and smiled at Avalon, her long, sheer veils fluttering in the breeze.

"Nice to see you again, Miss Pendragonache," Farrah glided over to Avalon, offering her a hand. "I can tell you're experiencing some deep despair."

"'Oo told yew my name?" Avalon eyed Farrah's hand suspiciously.

"Just a hunch," Farrah tossed a veil over her shoulder, giving Avalon a bit of a smirk. "Not to mention I can spot a Pendragonache a mile away. You really look like that uncle of yours…" Farrah let out a sigh that was a strange mixture of sadness and fondness. "I can tell you're in deep despair, and I can help you. There's something you need to see."

Avalon lowered her head in defeat and took Farrah's hand. Farrah pulled Avalon to her feet with ease and led her towards Dastardos' tree.

"Wot are yew doing 'ere…?" Avalon asked Farrah as she made her approach.

"I heard Dastardos ran off and I was curious," Farrah admitted with a quick glance at Avalon. "He seemed really dissatisfied with the reading I gave him in Poprockolis. I was actually quite worried about what made him into such a state. The papers said he seemed like he snapped before he disappeared…"

"Wait!" Avalon stopped walking and gaped at Farrah in disbelief. "Yew… yew knew that man in Poprockolis was…?"

"Dastardos?" Farrah chuckled, resting a hand on her heart. "Dear Avalon, I'm psychic. I'm no hokey fortune teller who rips people off of their money. I make sure people get the whole truth. I could tell he was Dastardos by the air around him and way he carried himself."

"Wot's this reading yew gave 'im?" Avalon folded her arms, refusing to move until this woman gave her the answers she craved.

"Well…" Farrah folded her hands primly under her chin. "I told him he might do something he regrets soon, which he obviously did. I also told him that his red string of fate was tightly knotted and roped around his neck like a noose. I said he might never find the other person at the end… but…" Farrah squinted at Avalon, tilting her head like a bird.

"But wot?" Avalon took a step back. It felt like Farrah's eyes would burn a hole through her…

Farrah circled Avalon, looking her up and down, reaching out to touch something Avalon couldn't see. Suddenly, Farrah's dark eyes clouded up with sorrow.

"Yours isn't around your neck… but these knots… I never saw a red string of fate as knotted as this except on…"

"Dastardos?" Avalon's throat went dry, her eyes bulging. Dastardos was… her soul mate?

"That's troublesome…" Farrah reached into her bag and pulled out an ornate pair of scissors with a strange looking, glowing blade. "If you want, I can cut your string for you."

"No!" Avalon shook her head. "I… I don't want that! I don't care if 'e's my soul mate or not, I just want to see 'im safe!"

"Well… if that's the case, what I found in Dastardos' house might reassure you," Farrah put her scissors away and gestured to Avalon. "Come."

Avalon followed Farrah into the house to find it completely empty, apart from Dastardos' stove and an old, ratty couch. There was the remains of… something on the wall.

Avalon felt a stab in her heart when she realized it was probably the _Dastardly_ poster she bought for him.

_Is this really 'ow 'e lived…?_ Avalon bit her lip.

"Here's what I wanted to show you," Farrah grabbed a tattered piece of paper that was tacked to the wall and held it out to Avalon.

"Wot is this…?" Avalon took it and began to read.

_Dear Pester,_

_Remember me? It's Dastardos._

_U probaby just decided to get off your lasy ass and come see wat happened to me. Well, I left. Dont bother looking for me becaus you wont find me. I went somewhere youd never thnk to look._

_I hoepe you die without me. As fucked up as this world is, it doesnt deserve a twistd bastard like u mucking it up._

_Have fun by yoursefl. I bet youre rotting alone in your lair cuz you can't even wipe your ass without me. Youll never see me again and Im all too happy with that._

_Suck it,_

_Dastardos_

Dastardos had even signed the letter in a near illegible mockery of cursive.

"'E… 'e's alive! 'E just ran away!" Avalon beamed at the letter and then turned her smile onto Farrah. Her happiness faded as quickly as it came, though, and she frowned intensely. "But… but there's no 'int to where 'e went! 'Ow will I find 'im?"

"With this."

Avalon looked up to see Farrah holding one of the most gorgeous flowers Avalon had ever seen. It was closed, but the bright red color and the sheer size of the petals was absolutely flooring.

Avalon wasn't impressed, though. "'Ow the 'ell am I supposed to find Dastardos with a _flower?"_

"It's not just any flower, Avalon…" Farrah waved her hand over it, her tongue sticking out of her mouth. Suddenly, the flower pointed to the southeast. "If you follow it, it'll lead you to the person on the other end of your red string of fate. As you get closer and closer, the flower will slowly open. Think of it as a special compass."

"Wow… 'ow much is it?" Avalon gave Farrah a suspicious look.

"Twenty thousand CC," Farrah opened and closed her free hand, a smirk on her purple painted lips.

Avalon sighed and paid up. Apparently going after her soul mate wasn't enough to move Farrah into giving her the flower for free.

"Thank you~" Farrah deposited the money in her purse and handed the flower to Avalon. "Now, considering the state of the flower, you're going to have a long journey ahead of you. I'd pack provisions. Lots of provisions."

"Thanks for the advice… but I was wondering…" Avalon glanced at the flower. "Why do yew carry this around? It seems like something yew'd only sell in your tent…"

"That one's mine," Farrah smirked. "I use it whenever I have to track down that crazy uncle of yours and knock some sense into him."

Avalon couldn't help raising a brow at that. It seemed like Farrah and her uncle Merlin had some history… but she'd have to ask about that story another day. For now, she had herself a reaper to find!

"Thanks, Farrah," Avalon held the flower up and it kept its head facing towards the southeast. "I'm going to go get ready."

"May the Gods be with you, Avalon," Farrah bowed her head to her. "Now… go find Dastardos and kick his butt into next week."

"I will!" Flower held close, Avalon went rushing towards the Village to grab supplies and a Horstachio.

When she saw Dastardos, she would punch him in the face so hard his entire family would feel it.


	4. I Had a Life

"Ahh, Kora, good morning!" Seiko beamed at her friend as she struggled with a basket full of fruit. Her caramel colored bangs were sticky with sweat on the forehead of her lilac mask.

"Hey, Seiko!" Kora grinned right back, wiping dirt off her hands and straightening up. She brushed more dirt from her purple shirt before turning her attention back to Seiko. "What's up with all the fruit?"

"Well, I thought I'd bring everyone breakfast…" Seiko put the basket down and stretched hugely, yawning. "I got up early to pick the fruit and everything… take whatever you want."

"Ahh, thank you, Seiko, that's sweet of you!" Kora grabbed an orange, a banana, and an apple and bit into the latter. "Do ya want money?" Kora asked around her mouthful of apple.

"No, no! We're a community; we're supposed to share! That's the motto, isn't it?" Seiko smiled so brightly that she almost blinded Dastardos, who was hiding in the bushes yet again.

Dastardos stifled a yawn. These girls were so boring… why did he even spy on them?

"Yes, 'Share what you have and make others happy.' What a woman Odessa was… if only I could have met her…" Kora shook her head, taking another bite of her apple.

_Wait… Odessa? She couldn't have been the same…_ Dastardos' jaw dropped and he went completely pale.

Dastardos couldn't help himself. He flew out of the bushes and nearly gave the girls a heart attack. Kora started choking on her apple and Seiko squeaked and started giving her the Heimlich.

Kora coughed up her apple piece and shook her head around, regaining her bearings. "Thanks, Seiko."

"No problem…" Seiko shrunk back, eyeing Dastardos warily. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"If you're here to bother us, screw off," Kora bit her apple aggressively and Dastardos had a bad feeling she wanted to do the same thing to his head.

"No, I don't want to mess with you right now!" Dastardos held up his hands, doing his best to look innocent. "I want to know about how this village was founded. That's it."

"Why?" Kora asked, raising an eyebrow. She threw the rest of her apple to her Galagoogoo, which happily began chomping on it, and began peeling her banana.

"That's none of your business," Dastardos folded his arms tightly. "But I live in this village now too. It's only fair."

"I would give him what he wants, Kora…" Seiko edged closer to Kora, holding on to her arm. She didn't like the crazy glint in Dastardos' eyes…

"Okay, fine," Kora chomped on her banana, tossing some of her hair over her shoulder. "Imma tell yow awl yow wawnt." She said with her mouth full. She swallowed and cracked her neck. "But you better not beat us up and take our money or anything when we're done."

"If you tell me, I won't bug you two for a week," Dastardos vowed, crossing his heart.

"Deal," Kora nodded and began to tell the tale.

"Ten years ago, a woman washed up on the shore here. She had no memory of anything; she only knew her own name, Odessa, and an advanced knowledge of piñata gardening. With the help of a family that lived on the coast here, two women and their adoptive daughters, she founded the Oceanside Gardening Commune.

Odessa was kind and beautiful, and word of her welcoming community attracted women of all ages from nearby towns. Together, they built up a beautiful community, filled with mind-blowingly amazing gardens. Everyone shared their resources and swapped gardening tips, so the area became one of the most fantastic places on the Island. Despite its beauty, we never got many visitors. We tended to only get gardeners from the surrounding towns, you see.

One day, Odessa started acting strange. She said there had been something nagging at her mind ever since she woke up on the shore years before. She became detached, and one day, she got sick. Even though she was young, the illness took her, leaving the town in mourning. But we kept growing and getting better and better, and wherever she is right now, we hope she's proud."

Kora finished her banana and tossed the peel away. "And that's where this Village came from… hey, you all right?"

Dastardos was shaking like a leaf in hurricane winds, his eyes wide and his usually vibrant mask pale. Kora's eyes might have been playing tricks on her, but she could have sworn Dastardos became even more transparent than he was before.

"Kora, come on, come help me bring the other gardeners their breakfast," Seiko tugged on Kora's shirt. "I don't want to stick around here…"

"Sounds like a plan…" Kora slunk away with Seiko, helping her carry the giant basket of fruit.

Once the girls were out of sight, Dastardos flew into the jungle, throwing his head back and screaming at the top of his lungs.

"FUCK! SHIT! DAMN IT!" With every curse, Dastardos attacked a tree. He flew through the forest, the swings of his staff so intense that he could knock over trees with no effort at all. Once his rampage ended, he sat down on a tree stump, buried his mask in his hands, and sat there, completely catatonic.

Only three words were going through his head.

_Mom was here mom was here mom was here mom was here mom was here MOM WAS HERE MOM WAS HERE MOM WAS HERE_

Dastardos wondered how things would have been different if his mother was still alive. Would she have recognized him on sight? Would she have let him spill his troubles to her? Would she have tried to slap him? Would she have held him and let him cry, just like when he was a child?

_God damn it, Dastardos!_ Dastardos would have slammed his head against a tree if he knew it would hurt him. _You're EVIL! You're the son of Pester! And you're thinking about getting held by your MOMMY?!_

Dastardos felt cold all of a sudden, stopping short and shaking. He looked down at his hands to see that they were barely there.

Dastardos raised his head and his eyebrows rose upward. What… what was in front of him?

Everything in the world seemed dark and far away, blurry, as if Dastardos were underwater. But that wasn't what shocked Dastardos.

In front of him were red strings, hundreds, maybe thousands, crossing over each other and stretching across the Island.

"Wh-what…?" Dastardos floated forward, his jaw slack, reaching out to touch the red string. Much to his alarm, he could touch it and feel it.

Dastardos twanged some of the red strings and they played what sounded like musical notes. Some were high, some were low, some barely made a sound at all.

"What the hell…?" Dastardos had to investigate this further.

Dastardos flew to the commune's main village and hid up a tree. Sure enough, every one of the now blurry girls had a clear as day red string protruding from their heart and stretching along the Island.

Two girls, one blonde and the other with blue hair, were sitting on a bench, laughing and talking together. Dastardos couldn't help but be repulsed when he noticed that their red strings connected to one another, elegantly swirling around the two young women.

Dastardos caught sight of the mayor; a crotchety old man who was trying to discreetly peer under a gardener named Lorely's skirt, and saw that his red string was barely there. It was just a tiny little broken piece, hanging from his chest limply.

"Why can I see the red strings…?" Dastardos said to himself, holding his head. He looked down at his feet and fell out of the tree once he saw the tree bark clearly through them.

"WHY CAN I SEE THE RED STRINGS?!" Dastardos yelled skyward, tearing at his silver hair. The girls screamed and scattered, apart from Lorely, who just glared daggers at Dastardos.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?! Can't you have your mental breakdown somewhere else, you freak?!" she spat, folding her arms as tight as a clenched fist.

"Yes… yes… yes, I will!" Dastardos proclaimed, flying towards the forest and his hollowed out tree, leaving the girls to their panic.

"Calm down, everyone, he's gone!" Lorely raised her arms and the girls calmed down.

"He… he always creeped me out…" Ameena panted, tired from all the running she just did. "But… this is a new low…"

"Come on, girls, I'll make you all tea," Lorely cracked her knuckles. "Let's calm down and pretend this never happened, okay?" Lorely threw her arm around Ameena and grinned at her.

"Okay…" Ameena sighed and all the girls walked towards Lorely's home.

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"Magnar, I can see them… I can see them all!" Dastardos flew into the tree, his eyes crazed and his teeth clenched together. His hair was messier than ever and his bad eye was whirling around in overdrive. Magnar squeaked at the sight and retreated under the cushion.

"Magnar… Magnar, please come here…" Dastardos sounded positively ragged. He lowered himself onto the ground, sitting tailor style and holding out his hands. "I need to hold you."

"O… okay… but please don't yell…" Magnar wiggled back out, approaching Dastardos tentatively and fearfully. Dastardos sighed fondly and attempted to pick up his beloved Macaraccoon…

… only to have his hands go right through him as if Magnar wasn't even there at all.

"AHHH!" Magnar shivered, his eyes filling with tears. "What'd you do that for, Stardos?"

"Sorry, sorry! I don't know what happened… let me try again…" Dastardos did try again. And again… and again… and again, but every move he made caused Magnar to become even more of a shivery mess.

"Stardos, please stop! You're gonna kill me!" Magnar sobbed, hiding under the cushion again.

"What… what is going on?" Dastardos paled, looking down at his transparent hands. "First the strings, and now this…?"

"Stardos…" Magnar poked his little head out. "I… I think you're crossing over."

"Crossing… over…?" Dastardos tilted his head.

_Stardos' voice is echoing… that's so scary…!_ Magnar swallowed his fear and kept talking.

"Remember how you said that you're partially between being alive and dead?" Magnar inquired, looking at the dirt. "And how Pester said you're partially in another dimension and stuff? A spiritual one?"

"Yes…" Dastardos crawled forward, his eyes wide as he gazed at his piñata. "What are you getting at?"

"I… since you're sad and lonely and all… I think your despair… is sending you fully into…" Magnar choked back a sob. He didn't want to say it; if he said it out loud it would be reality; it would be true!

"…so…" Dastardos chuckled darkly, his shoulders tensing despite the smirk on his face. "I'm dying. How wonderful."

Magnar let his tears flow freely. Even if Dastardos was acting all gross and weird, he was still his owner, dang it, and Magnar loved him with every fiber of his candy heart! "You can't die, Stardos! You gotta be happy again! What will I do when I'm all alone…?"

"You can talk, Magnar," Dastardos examined his dirt clogged, long nails. "Just go into town and tell the girls that you survive off Life Candy. They'll all love you… you're adorable. You could do much better than me."

"I don't want any of those dumb girls!" Magnar shouted through his tears. "I want _you!_ You've been around ever since I was a baby! You're all I've ever known! You're my favorite person ever and you're not gonna die on my watch! Besides… you saved me from dying before, so I owe you one!"

"It can't be helped, Magnar… just _look_ at me…" Dastardos gestured to his skeletal body. "I'm wasting away. I'm barely a human now. The world would be better off without the son of Pester…"

"You don't know Pester's your dad…" Magnar pouted. "There's no way someone that gross made you!"

"Only Pester could produce someone as sick and twisted as I am…" Dastardos laid down on the dirt floor, shutting his eyes. "I'm going to let death take me. You should go to the girls now."

"NO!" Magnar ran up to Dastardos, his little heart beating at a mile a minute. "You're always happy when you're around me! As long as I'm next to you, you won't die!" Magnar nestled himself as closely as possible to Dastardos' ghostly body. Magnar felt the coldness radiating off of Dastardos, but he didn't care. He would stay by his side for as long as it took.

"You're something else, Magnar…" Dastardos let one single tear fall from his good eye.

"Hang on for me! Not yourself. I don't care if you're Pester's kid or Jardiniero's kid or some other guy's kid! You're my owner and I love you and I'm not gonna let you die!" Magnar shrieked.

"Okay…" Dastardos let the smallest of smiles cross his mask. "For you."

"That's the right attitude," Magnar curled up in a ball and purred.

_Stardos isn't gonna die… not on my watch!_ Magnar thought, smirking in determination.

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Avalon stood in her kitchen, packing a backpack full of food. She had no idea how long the journey would take, but it couldn't hurt to be prepared. She packed bread, cheese, fruit, and all the ice packs she could stuff. She also took blankets and a sleeping bag, hoping no sour piñatas would accost her in her sleep.

_Come to think of it…_ Avalon thought, pursing her lips. _I 'aven't seen many sour Piñatas lately…_

She finished her packing and put on her backpack, heading outside to meet with her Horstachio, Achilles. She hoisted herself up onto his back and patted him on the back.

"Come on, Achilles…" Avalon tied the flower down on Achilles' head and it pointed south. "Just go where I tell yew to go and we'll be there in no time… 'opefully."

The Horstachio whinnied in agreement and soon the two of them were on their way.

Barely fifteen minutes after Avalon left, Yoto showed up at her door. He unlocked the door with the house key he liberated from Avalon's spares a few weeks back and burst in like a Limeocerous out of Hell.

"AVALON! AVALON! STORKOS IS PREGNANT!" he shouted at the top of his lungs. He had been holding it in all day… he _had_ to tell _someone!_ And Avalon wasn't the rumor spreading type!

There was no response, apart from Yoto's boisterous voice echoing around Avalon's huge mansion.

Yoto stuck out his lower lip and searched the house from bottom to top, getting lost several times along the way. Avalon was nowhere in sight…!

Yoto collapsed on the couch in one of Avalon's living rooms and pulled out his Alert System, calling Avalon several times, hoping in vain she would pick up. He began to wander around the house as he called and nearly had a heart attack when he heard vibrating noises coming from Avalon's room.

Yoto poked his head in and saw that Avalon's Alert System was lying on her bedside table.

"Ah, she forgot her Alert System?!" Yoto bit his nails. "Something _must_ be wrong! She'd never be so scatterbrained!"

A realization suddenly hit Yoto like a truck.

"Don't tell me…" Yoto had to sit down. "She went after Dastardos…?!"

Yoto bit his lip, rubbing his now throbbing temples.

This was one secret he'd have to force himself to keep.


	5. The Posters

Two days after Avalon departed, the Village finally noticed she was gone.

And by "the Village," I mean Yen.

Yen burst into Arfur's, his hair a mess and his eyes bulging as wide as a Galagoogoo's that just got its tail stepped on.

"Arfur! Arfur!" he shouted, running to the bar and nearly tripping over a Weedling.

"Gods, Yen, I never heard you shout before!" Arfur put down the glass he was polishing and looked at the young man in concern. "What's got you so worked up?"  
"It's… it's Avalon! She's missing! She hasn't shown her mask in _ages,_ and she hasn't answered my calls!" Yen choked, fighting back tears. Why did she leave? Was it because of him? Did she hate him so much that she had to leave town forever without so much as a warning?

"She's _what?!"_ Leena squeaked, nearly spazzing off of her chair in shock. She had been enjoying a peaceful breakfast date with Seedos until Yen came crashing in.

"Well, I haven't heard a thing about her!" Arfur shrugged his broad shoulders. "But I'll definitely keep an ear open for you."

"Has anyone else heard from her?" Yen turned towards the bar patrons, still fighting back tears. Everyone collectively shook their head no and Yen cursed under his breath.

"Thanks anyway…" Yen folded his arms and frowned intensely. "I guess…"

With that, he turned around and walked right out of the Inn.

"He's completely cracked," Maxime rolled her eyes before taking an enormous swig of her morning milkshake.

"Love makes you crazy," Leafos sighed wistfully.

"I think in his case it's a little _too_ crazy," Maxime shook her head. "I wonder what happened to Avalon… if I had a boyfriend that nutty, I'd hightail it out of here faster than you could say 'friend zone.'"

"A-Avalon _must_ be fine!" Leena grasped for reasons. "Um... maybe she went on a trip somewhere? She probably needed a break from all her responsibilities!"

"Why didn't she tell the Village, though?" Seedos asked, resting his cheek against his hand.

"She didn't want Yen to follow her," Maxime snorted, folding her arms. "He'd make it a 'surprise romantic getaway.' I know his type."

Everyone in the Inn murmured in agreement.

"Hey, if Avalon doesn't want Yen, I'll take him!" a Weedling giggled, two other lady Helpers voicing their agreement.

Maxime looked at them for a long, long time, her mouth pressed into a perfect straight line.

"Helpers are crazy," she murmured to Leafos, who was sitting across from her. Leafos couldn't help giggling.

Leena looked down at her hot chocolate, a sad look on her face.

"Leena..." Seedos moved his hand over hers. That was what you were supposed to do when you were comforting your girlfriend, right? "I'm sure Avalon's fine."

"You don't know that," Leena sniffled. "Pester could have kidnapped her again or something! Or Dastardos could have taken her to make her his wife!"

"Eugh," Seedos stuck out his tongue in disgust. "Dastardos has been missing for _weeks_ now, Leena! Why would he come back just to kidnap Avalon?"

As soon as the words flew from Seedos' mouth, a realization hit him. What if he _did_ do that? He knew his stupid brother had feelings for Avalon… but he couldn't exactly tell everyone that.

"Carnal pleasures," Maxime cut in, grinning over the top of her chair at Seedos and Leena.

Leena blushed a deep dark red and waved Maxime off. "Don't say that! It's _disgusting!"_

"Heh, you are _waaaaaay_ too easy to fluster. It's cute," With that, Maxime turned her attention back to her milkshake.

"I'm sure Avalon is fine," Seedos patted Leena's hand.

"I hope you're right..." Tears pricked at the corners of Leena's eyes. If her best friend went running off without a warning, it was either something really important, or she _had_ to be in trouble!

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Avalon was riding on Achilles through the jungle as fast as she could, hoping in vain that she'd find some kind of sign of Dastardos being there. She hadn't had much luck thus far, and, sighing, figured it would be best to stop and take a break.

She rested against a tree, eating a sandwich and examining the flower Farrah had gave her. Something seemed... off about it. Before it had been beautiful and blooming perfectly, but now...

Avalon swallowed and looked at the flower, her eyebrows rising with surprise. It was starting to wither, its petals browning at the edges.

"Wot... but it survived in Farrah's bag for a long time..." Avalon bit her lip, too afraid to touch the flower should it crumble into dust.

Achilles whinnied with concern and nudged Avalon's face, but she was too caught up in the flower to return his affection. Gently pushing Achilles away, Avalon picked up the flower and held it up.

"Why would it be dying...?" Avalon examined it from all angles, as if that would give her the answer to her question. "Is... Dastardos in trouble?"

Deep down in Avalon's gut, she had a feeling she was right.

Avalon shoved the rest of her sandwich in her mouth rather inelegantly. Desperate times called for desperate measures! She threw her pack back on, her heart pounding.

She mounted Achilles' back and patted him on the flank. "Come on, boy! We 'ave a Reaper to find!"

Achilles neighed loudly and began galloping through the trees. Avalon's hair streamed behind her, a serious look on her face.

She would find Dastardos if it killed her.

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After resting, Dastardos found himself with more energy. He'd do whatever it took to keep himself alive. He had to for Magnar, after all.

He could still hold The Whacking Stick; it was living things he had trouble touching. Dastardos decided to de-stress by repeatedly slammed the sticks into poor, hapless trees in the forest, letting them tumble to the ground and right through them. The sensation of making the trees topple downward made Dastardos feel better in a way.

"Yeah, let's see how those stupid girls like their 'gorgeous' forest now!" Dastardos growled as another tree plummeted.

For once, Magnar poked his head out of the tree they lived in, wincing as Dastardos committed more deforestation.

"You're gonna make another commotion!" Magnar warned. "The girls will get mad at you and maybe you'll get upset again!"

"Psh, nothing those girls would say could make me feel any worse. They're all full of hot air!" Dastardos snorted. "But you know what _would_ upset me? Them seeing you. Go hide!" Dastardos shooed Magnar away.

Magnar squeaked and retreated into the tree, the sound of Dastardos shattering hapless trees echoing throughout the seaside village.

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"So... what did you want to talk to me about?" Gretchen asked Storkos, who looked awfully flustered.

Storkos had invited Gretchen for a picnic in a secluded clearing in the forest. Gretchen had thought it was strange, but accepted the invitation anyway. Storkos wasn't a bad kid… Gretchen didn't really know her that well, but Gretchen knew Storkos was hard-working and strong. Alarm bells went off in Gretchen's head when she saw how troubled Storkos seemed when she asked her.

Storkos wasn't willing to talk about her troubles stra**i**ght away, though, instead offering Gretchen a bottle of wine and homemade sandwiches. Oddly, Storkos didn't so much as take a single sip of the wine, but she ate enough sandwiches to feed a starving Village for a week.

Gretchen was still chewing her first one, savoring the taste. Storkos was an excellent cook... if Yoto and her did get married, he'd get fat in no time.

_Maybe I ought to marry Bart after all..._ Gretchen smirked to herself. _I certainly wouldn't mind family dinners with Storkos as the chef._

"Well... it's a _unique_ problem..." Storkos nervously nibbled on the crust of her sandwich. "I thought someone as mature as you would be able to hear it without telling anyone... I swear I'm going to _burst_ if I don't tell at least one other person. Especially since I need advice..."

Gretchen swallowed her mouthful of sandwich and cocked a brow at Storkos. "Spit it out, sweetie."  
Storkos sighed, resting her sandwich in her lap and looking away from Gretchen, taking deep breaths. Gretchen decided to give her a moment and took another bite of her lunch.

Storkos shut her eyes and finally let out her confession. "Gretchen, I'm pregnant, and Yoto's the father."

Gretchen completely and utterly choked on her hunk of sandwich.

After Storkos was done giving Gretchen the Heimlich and the two of them tossed Gretchen's partially chewed sandwich wad into the woods for the Mallowolves, Gretchen looked at Storkos incredulously.

"You two... actually...?" Gretchen made a lewd gesture with her hands, which almost made Storkos herself choke. She figured a sophisticate like Gretchen would be above and beyond gestures like that... but Gretchen was too flabbergasted to find the right words.

"We sure did..." Storkos sighed, moving a pigtail over her shoulder. "We... weren't careful enough and made a mistake. But... I'm happy."

Storkos rested her hands on her stomach. She couldn't even feel the baby inside of her, but she knew they were there. "I never thought I'd fall in love, let alone get to have children with this job of mine... what I wanted to know is... how can I break this to my father?"

"You shouldn't tell him yet!" Gretchen held up her hands in warning. "He'll have a heart attack. You should test the waters; Storkos, let him know how you feel about Yoto. Maybe he'll surprise you."

"I don't know..." Storkos wrung her hands in her lap, biting her lip. "He used to always call Yoto useless and talentless..."

"But Yoto _isn't_ useless or talentless! Not anymore, anyway," Gretchen's voice was warm, which was a rarity. "He's a talented Tinker now. Both Bart and I can attest to that. You and Yoto should go together, hand and hand, and tell your father you're in love. Get his blessing and all that."

"But what if he says no? What would I do?" Storkos bit her lip, raking her brain for answers. Gretchen reached forward and tilted Storkos' chin up so she was looking right into her eyes.

"You _make_ him say yes," Gretchen said, her face completely serious. "You can spring the whole pregnancy thing on him once you start to show." Gretchen looked down at Storkos' stomach, smirking a bit. "How far along are you?"

"A month, apparently," Storkos rested a hand on her belly. "Plenty of time to consider everything. I know I want to keep her... or him."

"I'm looking forward to meeting my new niece or nephew," Gretchen patted Storkos on the shoulder, rising to her feet. "Thanks for the lunch."

"Wait... niece or nephew...?" Storkos smiled knowingly at Gretchen. "You mean...?"

"Bart has been pestering me to marry him, yes," Gretchen's scarves folded across her chest. "I... think I just might say yes. Long as he doesn't leave me at the altar like he did with all of those other women."

"If he does, I'll kick his ass into next week!" Storkos mashed a fist into her hand.

"Heh," Gretchen snickered. "You're a great person, Storkos. Never change. Mind if I take this wine?" Gretchen bent down to grab it.

"Not at all!" Storkos beamed. "I got it for you, after all."

"Thanks." With that, Gretchen turned and began to sashay out of the forest. After taking a few steps, she turned around to look over her shoulder at Storkos.

"By the way," a smile crossed her perfectly formed lips. "Good luck. And if Jardiniero refuses to give you his blessing, I'll kick _his_ ass into next week!"

"You'd punch a crippled man for my sake?" Storkos gawped at Gretchen.

"You bet," Gretchen couldn't help letting a chuckle slip.

Storkos flew over to Gretchen and enveloped her in a warm hug.

"Good luck to you too..." Storkos whispered. "And thank you so much."

"You still have a lot of growing up to do," Gretchen said, breaking the embrace. "But I have every faith in you."

After ruffling Storkos' hair, Gretchen resumed her trek back to the Village.

"Looks like Yoto and I have a lot of preparation to do..." Storkos sighed to herself as she began to clean up the picnic.

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The night was so quiet that Yen's thundering heart sounded as loud as a Tigermisu's roar. Yen swallowed as he looked up at the mansion in front of him. It was overcolorful, a bright, obnoxious purple, with green and pink shutters around each enormous window. Even in the dark of the night, the house radiated with color.

"It's… very Eddie…" Yen muttered to himself before glancing at the doorbell. _It's painted rainbow… Jesus…_

Yen pressed it, his heart speeding up even more. He had leapt out of bed and ran here at top speed after an idea sprang into his head. An _amazing_ idea that would surely bring his darling Avalon back to him!

Eddie's mother answered the door a few moments later, her hair in curlers and her ornate nightgown comically stretched by her pregnant belly.

"Why you coming here at three in morning?" She shooed Yen away with her finely manicured hands. "Shoo! We are not wanting your selling!"

She moved to slam the door, but Yen swished through it before she could.

Erin sighed and planted her hands on her hips. "Why are you giving me a test for my patience! I said shoo! The way you dress, you vagabond! You want eat all food in rich peoples' fridge! Not tonight, I say!"

Yen blinked, looking down at his hoodie. He had been wearing the same one quite often for the past three years… it was showing its age. "I'm not a hobo, Mrs. Lizard, I'm your son's… friend…" Yen wasn't sure if he could truly call Eddie a friend, but if this worked, they would be tighter than tree bark. "And I need to see him. Right. Now."

"I am not understanding why you are needing to see my darling son at three AM," Erin folded her arms, squinting at Yen. "Is very suspicious!"

"I… I need to confess my love!" Yen blurted. "I have to do it now or I'll never get another chance! I'm leaving tomorrow morning, you see, to go on a trip with my uncle. Forever! If Eddie can convince him to let me stay, I'd be the happiest man alive!" Yen couldn't believe what was coming out of his mouth, but it flowed out freely and with every word he dug himself a deeper hole. He figured he might as well add to the drama and dropped to his knees, folding his hands under his chin.

Erin sized him up and sighed. "Well, can't guarantee my son will be wanting to date boy that is looking like homeless man, but I will not stop the trying. Eddie's room upstairs, left hall, third door on right side."

"Thank you thank you thank you!" Yen jumped to his feet and hugged Erin. "You're a saint!" With that, he ran up the stairs at top speed, tripping over the top step and landing flat on his face.

Erin shook her head. "Homeless Boy probably lying, but eh... maybe won't kill son."

With that, Erin headed back to her bedroom, mentally bemoaning how strange her life had become since she came to Piñata Island.

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Yen loomed over Eddie's bed, an enormous grin on his face. He knew. He knew what Eddie was about to do would make _sure_ Avalon was found.

"Hey, Eddie…" Yen nudged him, still grinning.

Eddie groaned, rolled onto his back, and opened his eyes, seeing a shadowed Yen mask with the most horrifying smile he had ever seen.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!" Eddie shrieked loud enough to wake the entire Island, pulling his blankets over his face.

"… are you finished?" Yen asked, his grin fading away.

"Yes… yes…" Eddie sat up in bed, his eyes bugging out and his hand on his chest. "Why are you here? Are you CRAZY?"

"No, but I'm _going_ crazy! Eddie, I've _gotta_ find Avalon and you've gotta help me!" Yen hopped up on Eddie's bed and grabbed his shoulders. Even in the dark, Eddie could see that Yen's eyes were bloodshot.

"… at three AM?" Eddie blinked, edging away from Yen.

"It's about _Avalon,_ and I need to get this done ASAP so it's the first thing everyone sees in the morning!" Yen begged, his voice desperate. He took Eddie's hands and his lower lip trembled. "We need to make posters! She wouldn't leave without a word and not answer my calls if there wasn't a _giant_ problem!"  
Eddie's eyes widened even further. "She _has_ been missing for quite a while… I'm terribly worried. She's a good friend of my father, you know… he's been really worried about her."

"See? Now let's make some posters! I'll put them up and everyone can start searching tomorrow!" Yen urged, jumping off of Eddie's bed and going through his desk.

"H-hey! Don't do that without my consent!" Eddie hopped out of bed himself and shoved Yen aside, grabbing paper and colored pencils himself. "All right, I'll make one poster and then we can use my copy machine. We'll find your girl if it kills us!"

"Oh, you're the best…" Yen sniffled. "Without Avalon… I feel so lost and lonely…"

"Love makes fools of us all," Eddie patted Yen's shoulder. "I'll gladly help you."

Yen showed Eddie his favorite photo of Avalon on his Alert System, a lovely portrait of her sitting on a bench with her hair blowing in the breeze. In no time, Eddie had a full color, amazingly detailed Missing Person poster done.

"I don't understand why we couldn't have just printed out a photo…" Eddie observed.

"Art is more eye catching…" Yen smiled as he looked at Avalon's portrait. "And this is just… beautiful. Come on, let's make copies!"

Eddie and Yen made an absolute ton of copies and Yen swore to put them all up around the Village before day broke.

"Are you sure you don't want my help?" Eddie offered, snapping a rubber band around a neat pile of posters.

"I'm sure; you need your rest," Yen gestured to his eyes. "I haven't gotten a wink of sleep since Avalon went missing. I'll be fine. I've become a Hootyfruity."

"If you say so…" Eddie sighed, worried about Yen's mental health. He handed him the stack of posters and Yen grinned gratefully.

"Thanks, and uh, if your mom asks how my confession went, tell her you rejected me."

"Wait, what?" Eddie tried to ask.

But Yen was already gone.

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Yen spent every moment until the sun went up taping up posters of Avalon's beautiful face. With every poster he put up, he felt the hole in his heart grow larger. Hopefully these would see that his woman would return to his arms soon…

After covering Lottie's store windows with many of the posters, Yen only had one left. He briefly considered posting it somewhere, but the artistry of the picture of Avalon was just too much to bear. He wound up taking it back to his room and placing it on his spare pillow right next to him as he got ready to sleep.

"Goodnight, Avalon…" he yawned as he caressed the picture. "I hope you're safe… wherever you are."

Yen closed his eyes and fell asleep, his arms around the poster.


	6. I Don't Even Need to Know Why

The sun was setting, but Dastardos wasn't going to sleep for a while.

All of the girls had got together at Kora's garden for a bonfire, leaving their piñatas perfectly unattended. A few Sours had seeped into the area, infecting piñatas left and right. The girls, not used to the Sours, weren't sure how to deal with them. They decided to meet up at Kora's to discuss tactics around a roaring fire that Kora insisted would keep the piñatas away.

Usually, Dastardos checked his Alert System to find sick piñatas, but since it was smashed he had to rely on intuition alone. Luckily, years and years of piñata breaking had given him a sense for weakened piñatas, especially ones in close proximity.

He subtly floated towards Ameena's garden, gripping onto his weapon of choice as hard as he can. Being able to touch that gave him a lifeline to the living world. As hard as he was trying to stay alive, he still faded away a little more every day.

_I've been having good days and bad days…_ he snickered to himself. _But today was a good one. I feel like I could take on a whole army!_

Dastardos was extremely pleased to see that the sick piñata in Ameena's garden was a Tigermisu, which was rare, valuable, and SUPER high level. A sweet from that would make Magnar feel nourished for _weeks!_

After quickly looking around for Ameena, Dastardos deemed the coast clear and closed in on the Tigermisu. Smirking, he noticed the jeweled collar around its pale neck and its carefully brushed papery coat.

"Ahh, someone's gonna cry tonight…" Dastardos chuckled. "Oh well; their tears mean I won't have to cry any myself. Goodbye, friend, don't worry, Magnar will put your life sweet to good use!"

Dastardos raised his staff high above his head, cackling madly. The Tigermisu looked up at him pitifully and Dastardos found himself wishing that the wind would dramatically blow his hair or lightning would strike the sky. Anything to make the last image this thing saw be more dramatic!

Dastardos brought the stick down upon the Tigermisu, but, much to his annoyance, it didn't explode straight away. It took Dastardos four more swings to shatter it into a million pieces.

"Whew…" One of Dastardos' scarves picked up the Tigermisu's life sweet and deposited it into the reaper's open palm. "I guess I don't have the strength I used to, huh?" Dastardos asked his scarves, pocketing the candy. Dastardos' scarves looked sheepishly at the ground, one of them nodding.

"Oh well; at least I can still break them at all!" Dastardos chuckled, shrugging his bony shoulders. "Back to business."

Humming happily, he headed off to Lizzie's garden.

He hoped she wasn't there… he hated to admit it to himself, but that girl scared him out of his goddamned wits.

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"Are you ready, Yoto?" Storkos gripped onto Yoto's hand so hard Yoto feared she was cutting off all circulation. He felt like his hand was going to fall off, but he wasn't about to deny Storkos her comfort…

_How will I explain to Uncle Bart that I lost a hand?_ Yoto bit his lip. _I wouldn't be able to tinker anymore! NO ONE can tinker with only one hand!_

"Yoto… are you in there?" Storkos waved her free hand in front of her beau's masked face.

"Ahhh, sorry, Storkos, spaced out for a second…" Yoto blushed, averting his eyes from hers.

The two of them were standing outside of the windswept tree that Jardiniero and Leafos called home. They planned on striding inside and telling Jardiniero all about their love, hoping that he would accept Yoto as a worthy significant other for his daughter.

Yeah, Yoto was about to projectile vomit all over Jardiniero's windows.

"What should we say?" Storkos asked, her grip on Yoto's hand somehow tightening. Yoto felt his hand blood drop to critically low levels. "Should we just… cut to the chase?"

"We shouldn't beat around the bush!" Yoto puffed out his chest, doing his best to put on a brave posture. "If I flounder around like a fool, your dad will probably think I'm unworthy!"

Storkos snorted. "If you breathe the same air as him, he'll think you're unworthy." Storkos looked down at her stomach, finally releasing Yoto's poor hand to place both of hers on her belly. "We're not telling him about… you know who, right?"

"NO. NO. NOPE. NO!" Yoto shook his head as if Storkos asked him if she should put his genitals to a cheese grater. "We can drop that bomb on him in a few months. Or when the kid is twenty-seven."

Storkos gave Yoto a flat look. "Sweetie, Dad is going to _notice_ my stomach looks like I swallowed an entire watermelon whole."

"Avoid him?" Yoto suggested, shrugging goobaaishly as he attempted to shake his hand out in a subtle manner.

"We have a weekly teatime," Storkos shook her head. "Leafos, Dad, and I all get together to talk about what's been going on with our lives. Of course, I usually have to leave in the middle of it because of work, but… I can't just stop going. He'll get suspicious."

Yoto bit his lip, gazing at the door to the house. "Storkos… I… I really don't think we should do this. Not yet, anyway."

"What?" Storkos frowned intensely, leaning forward with her hands on her hips. "Yoto, what happened to you wanting to pledge your love for me to everyone in town?"

"I still wanna do that! I swear!" Yoto's tone was apologetic, his eyes practically bugging out of his head. "Just… not yet! I need to get advice… how to look presentable, how to carry myself…" Yoto looked down at his shirt and ran a hand through his hair. "He'd never let you date a boy with tangles in his hair and stains on his shirt…"

Storkos tutted. "Yoto…" She lifted his chin so they were making eye contact. "I want Dad to accept _you,_ not a fake, formalized version of you!"

"But… but… he _never_ would!" Yoto's lower lip trembled.

"Well, we'll have to make him!" Storkos shoved Yoto towards the door. "Come on!"

Yoto leapt away from Storkos' hands and whipped around, shaking his head. "N-not today! I need to prepare! I need to think… I need to come up with _something_ that can impress him!" Yoto looked down at his feet. "I can't risk rejection. We still have time."

Storkos sighed, but she didn't want to argue any further. If Yoto was this uncomfortable, she shouldn't force him. "Yoto… okay, but we have to do it eventually, you know that, right?"

"I know," Yoto kissed Storkos on the forehead. "Soon, I swear."

The two of them walked off hand-in-hand, leaving the old man's house behind.

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"Magnar, I gotta go do more reaping."

Dastardos' raised his head from his position lying on the floor, sniffing the air. "Yup, there's definitely a dying piñata out there somewhere."

"C-can't you let this one go?" Magnar got as close to Dastardos as possible, looking up at him with pleading eyes. "I'm more than good with the sweet you gave me!"

"I can't risk you having another famine… besides," Dastardos scoffed a bit, floating off the ground and folding his skinny arms. "I don't want the girl this who owns this piñata to think I have a crush on her or something. Yeugh."

"Oh, okay…" Magnar sighed, pawing at a pebble on the dirt floor. "Come back soon…"

"I will," Dastardos reached forward to try and pet Magnar, but he stopped with his hand hovering over him when he remembered he couldn't touch him. Sighing, he grabbed the Whacking Stick and headed outside.

Magnar curled up into a ball and fell into a light, twitchy sleep.

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Little did Magnar know, about fifteen minutes after Dastardos left, their little tree soon had another visitor.

Avalon had followed the trail of broken trees to Dastardos' hollow one, knowing exactly who caused the deforestation. Those trees weren't felled by axes, and Avalon knew only one person who could smash trees when he was angry…

Avalon would have strolled right past the tree Dastardos now called home, but when she noticed the tattered curtain hanging in front of the opening, alarm bells wailed in her head.

_It's just like back home…_ Without even thinking, Avalon deposited the flower into her bag and headed through the curtains.

Much to her disappointment, the tree was dark and empty, except for a damp little cushion. She walked forward to see if Dastardos was hiding in any corner and nearly tripped over a lump on the ground.

"Wot the-?!" Avalon exclaimed loudly, which woke up Magnar.

"Ah… ah…?" Magnar opened his eyes and they widened to the size of the moon when he saw Avalon.

Avalon looked down at the source of the noise and her brain flooded with all sorts of confused thoughts.

"Yew… yew look… familiar…" Avalon crouched down, her brow furrowed as she looked Magnar over. "Are yew lost? This isn't a good place for a little guy like yew…"

"I know you!" Magnar exclaimed, hopping up and down energetically, completely forgetting about his nap.

"Wait, yew can _TALK?"_ Avalon's brained reeled. She never met any piñata that could talk other than Langston!

"Uh-huh! Learned from my owner. Stardos talks about you _ALL THE TIME!"_ Magnar bared his pointy teeth in an enormous grin.

"Star… dos?" Avalon staggered backward, landing flat on her butt. "Yew know Stardos? 'E's alive?! Is 'e in this village?"

"Oh… uh oh…" Magnar covered his mouth, looking at her desperately. "I… I shouldn't have said that! But…"

"No, no, tell me all about it! I thought 'e was gone for good!" Avalon was barely fighting back tears, completely forgetting about Dastardos for one brief moment. Getting back in touch with someone everyone thought was dead… that would be something!

"Um… well… he only lets me… call him that…" Magnar dithered. "DASTARDOS IS STARDOS!" he blurted, not able to hold it back.

Avalon almost fainted right then and there.

Avalon covered her mouth, backing up, her eyes bulging. "N-no way… Stardos was strong and kindhearted… not an idiotic coward!"

"Oh, he's definitely Stardos…" Magnar sighed, shaking his head. "I'm the best piñata to tell you that!"

"No way," Avalon backed up so far she was against the wall. "Not in a million years. Stardos was so eloquent and smart… Dastardos is impulsive and swears like a sailor!"

"Years of isolation can change a person…" Magnar pawed at the dirt, his little brow furrowed.

Avalon bit her lip, doing her best to rake her brain and make sense of the situation. Dastardos was a jerk, sure, but… Stardos was a bit selfish. He was stubborn like Dastardos… but… they looked almost nothing alike!

_Wait…_

"That explains…" Avalon's brain went crazy. She remembered how Dastardos had completely went catatonic when Lukah called her Lonnie, how Dastardos yelled that he kept his promise to take her to watch the stars – damn, how did she not realize it right then and there!

There was a reason Dastardos treated her so differently once he got to know her… he remembered her from his past!

Dastardos _was_ Stardos!

"'E… 'e literally only added two letters to 'is name and I DIDN'T REALIZE IT?!" Avalon tore at her hair. "I'm so stupid! SO STUPID!"

"Are… are you gonna hurt me?" Magnar asked, shuddering as he backed away from Avalon.

"No! No, quite the opposite!" Laughing joyously, Avalon picked Magnar up. "Looks like the people I wanted to find the most are one and the same…"

"Dastardos… hasn't been feeling his best, though…" Magnar confessed as Avalon stroked his back. "I hope he doesn't have a heart attack when he sees you…"

"I think yew 'ave a lot to tell me, little guy," Avalon sat tailor style on the ground, Magnar on her lap. "Start from the day that idiot ran away."

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"Magnar, I brought you- HHHHHHHHHHH!?" Dastardos dropped a handful of life sweets when he flew through the door and saw Avalon holding Magnar on her lap.

Reaching a new level in gracefulness, Dastardos stopped floating and fell right on his ass with a _WHUMP!_

In spite of everything, Avalon threw her head back and laughed. Dastardos' dying eyes might have been playing tricks on him, but was she tearing up…?

"I never thought I'd see yew again…" Avalon held out a hand to Dastardos. "I… I missed you!"

"What happened to hating me?" Dastardos folded his arms, not moving from his spot on the ground. "And what are you doing with that _thing_ that I've totally never seen in my life?"

Magnar frowned, tears pricking the corners of his eyes.

"Don't play dumb… Stardos…" Avalon said his true name slowly and carefully, as if that would set him off.

Dastardos almost blinked out of existence from shock alone, but managed to get his composure back and regained at least some of his physical form. "Who… who… YOU." Dastardos pointed to Magnar, his mask paling.

"I…it slipped out!" Magnar squeaked, covering his face. Having Dastardos get mad at him was the worst feeling _ever!_

"You're lucky I can't stay mad at you…" Dastardos spat. "I suppose since you hate me so much, you're going to run around the village back home waving my true identity around on a banner or something?"

"Dastardos… if I 'ated yew, I wouldn't come all the way out 'ere, now would I?" Avalon put her hands on her hips, frowning intensely.

"B-but… that call…!" Dastardos couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"It was Yoto…" Avalon shook her head. "'E can do a flawless impression of everyone 'e meets. That bastard brother of 'is put him up to it."

"UGH, THOSE IDIOTS!" Dastardos punched the wall, his fist ghosting right through it. "Next time I see them, I'm going to-"

"Please, spare Yoto!" Avalon held up her hands. "'E didn't know any better! Yen told 'im yew were 'urting me!"

"Fine… I'm still going to turn Yen into mincemeat…" Dastardos spat. "But… that doesn't answer my first question. Why did you come out here?"

"I was… worried about yew…" Avalon took Magnar off of her lap and placed him gently on the ground. She walked over to the still sitting Dastardos and held out her hand. "Yew look terrible. Worse than I've ever seen yew. Yew look like… you're…"

"Dying?" Dastardos snickered. "_Bingo._"

"Stardos is fading away!" Magnar cut in. "I try to keep him happy so he won't, but… he's doing really bad still! Can you help us, Affalon?" Magnar gave Avalon the cutest begging eyes he could muster.

"Wot can I do? I don't know 'ow to cure a dying reaper!" Avalon sat down next to Dastardos and tilted her head as she looked at him, as if that would somehow give her an idea of what to do. "I… I didn't want to come all the way out 'ere only to find that yew were _dying!"_ Avalon sounded choked up… was she going to cry? That made Dastardos feel awfully shitty…

"I think your presence alone will help…" Dastardos averted his eyes, his cheeks darkening. "Avalon… I… I didn't realize it until you made that call, but…" Dastardos swallowed a lump in his ghostly throat. "I… I think I'm in love with you. Or something like that. I dunno…"

Just like Dastardos feared she would, Avalon said absolutely nothing. After a long, palpable silence, Dastardos sighed and shook his head.

"I thought you'd react like that… I just wanted to… clear the air. When I saw Yen all over you… I couldn't even think straight. I was angry. I was jealous. And he manipulated me in order to keep you! I… I felt my heart break when I got that call from his stupid twin. That's when I knew I had feelings for you… or something. You can go now if you want to. Telling you that will keep me around…"

Much to Dastardos' surprise, Avalon didn't leave. Instead, she leaned forward to envelope Dastardos in a hug…

…and went right through him as if he wasn't there.

Avalon curled up into a ball, shuddering on the floor.

"W-wot was THAT for?!" Avalon spluttered, looking at him with hurt in her eyes. "That's not wot you're supposed to do when a girl tries to 'ug you!"

"Wait… you… you feel the same way?" Dastardos gaped at her.

"Of _course_ I do!" Avalon to a sitting position, still shivering, with her knees drawn up to her chest. "I wouldn't follow you all the way out 'ere if I didn't 'ave… feelings for yew! But why did you get all ghostly on me?" Avalon squinted at him, frowning intensely.

"I… I can't help it…" Dastardos looked at his pale hands. "Ever since I came here, I've been… becoming more ghostly. I don't know what I can do to get back to my old self…"

"Hey, Stardos, since Affalon showed up, you got a little more colorful!" Magnar chimed, hopping a bit. "I think she's helping!"

"She is?" Dastardos turned his hand over. He did seem a little less see through…

"Well, we'll have to work hard to bring yew back, then!" Avalon scooched closer to Dastardos and offered him a hand.

"I can't…" Dastardos shook his head.

"I don't care; I'll get used to the coldness. Yew need all the support yew can get!" Avalon flexed her fingers.

Sighing, Dastardos placed a hand on the dirt floor. Avalon put her hand over it – through it, rather – and bit her lip, doing her best to adjust to the cold.

Dastardos and Avalon sat in silence for a few moments, Dastardos closing his eyes and doing his best to think positive thoughts.

"I believe in yew…" Avalon whispered, clenching her hand into a fist. "Think good thoughts. Maybe that will 'elp."

Dastardos furrowed his brow. Finding good thoughts when you lived an existence like his was hard…

Dastardos thought back to tossing coffee in Yen's face, laughing with Seedos at Poprockolis, coming home to Magnar after a long day of reaping, Pester accidentally losing his pants in front of everyone at the P-Factor, the gardener who had fainted into a pile of Moozipan dung when he killed her piñata…

Avalon noticed the smirk on Dastardos' mask and chuckled a bit. She could only imagine what the reaper considered positive thoughts…

Dastardos thought about watching the stars in Poprockolis with Avalon, the day he met her and she nearly got them both killed with their fear of heights, he and Sidos taking care of the plants in the garden, the day Magnar hatched…

Dastardos felt a strange tingling sensation in his body as the color came flooding back. Avalon withdrew her hand, watching Dastardos in anticipation.

"Almost there, Dastardos…" he said under his breath to himself, wringing his hands. "Keep up the positive thoughts."

_Avalon reciprocates your feelings._

As soon as that thought entered Dastardos' mind, he felt his heart flood with happiness. Magnar shrieked with joy when he noticed Dastardos come back to the land of the living once again. Sure, he was still white as a sheet, but he was BACK!

Before Avalon could even do anything, Magnar jumped into Dastardos' lap and was happy to see that it was solid again.

"YAY! I thought I'd never sit here again!" Magnar rolled over on his back, beaming up at Dastardos. "I love you, Stardos!"

"I thought I'd never pet you again!" Dastardos scratched Magnar on the tummy and Magnar giggled like crazy. "I'll pet you more in a second…" Dastardos put Magnar on the ground, looked Avalon in the eyes, and took a deep breath.

Moving his mask aside in a swift, quick motion, he swooped forward and pressed his cold lips against Avalon's warm ones.

Avalon certainly didn't expect this… but she wasn't complaining. She put her hand on Dastardos' back and made the kiss even deeper.

_I can feel his spine…_ Avalon thought as her cheeks flooded hot. _He really 'asn't been taking care of 'imself…_

"Ooh…" Magnar turned around and covered his eyes with his paws. He had a feeling that watching this would be a rude thing to do!

Dastardos broke the kiss after a few moments and quickly moved his mask back to where it belonged. "Sorry, I…"

"Don't apologize…" Avalon rested a hand on Dastardos' masked cheek. "Why'd you put this back on?" She asked, tracing her thumb over a crack on his mask.

Dastardos moved his eyes away from her, his face coloring a deep dark black. "I think if you saw my face you wouldn't like me much anymore."

"Nonsense!" Avalon tried to grab both sides of his mask, but Dastardos ducked away from her before she could.

"Don't remove peoples' masks without their consent!" Dastardos protested, holding onto his mask for dear life. "That's basic human decency!"

"Wot are you 'iding from me?" Avalon squinted at Dastardos suspiciously. "Yew don't confess yew love someone and then refuse to show them your face! _That's_ basic 'uman decency!"

"I… I have scars…" Dastardos let his arms flop to his sides. "Really gross scars. From the acid burns when Pester…" Dastardos shook his head. "When I ate the sour candy…"

"Look, I'll take off mine first, will that make yew feel better?" Avalon asked, pulling off her mask without waiting for Dastardos' answer.

Dastardos couldn't help gasping when he saw her face. Sure, he had snuck a peek at her face before, back in Poprockolis, but this was a _real_ unmasking. Not a perverted peek at her face. He got the full view, and she wore an honest smile, her cheeks rosy. _Avalon, blushing?_ Dastardos wasn't aware he could _ever_ have that effect on a woman… Avalon's gorgeous, sharp featured and thickly lashed eyes would look even more stunning next to Dastardos' ugly face.

"Avalon, you've set the bar too high…" Dastardos snickered sheepishly, withdrawing from Avalon and holding onto his mask's cheeks.

"Oh, shove off, I'm sure yew look dashing!" Avalon reached for Dastardos' mask again, an expectant look on her uncovered face.

"Okay, but you aren't going to like me anymore…" Dastardos squeezed his eyes shut and prepared for the worst. Avalon let out a little sigh of relief and took off Dastardos' mask, sucking in a gasp when she saw his face.

Dastardos' bad eye's injury was clear as day. His milky, broken eye was surrounded by charred, burnt skin. His burns spread to the bottom of his chin and there were a few streaks of burnt flesh on his forehead. Half of his mouth was almost completely unrecognizable.

"Yeah, I thought you'd make that face…" Dastardos hugged himself, frowning sorrowfully. "You can see yourself out now. I won't take any offense."

Avalon responded by grabbing Dastardos by the front of his shirt and kissing him even harder than she did before.

Magnar honestly felt like he shouldn't be there… but he was really happy for his owner!

Dastardos broke the kiss, looking at Avalon with his jaw slack and his eyes wide. " You… you…"

Avalon rested a finger on his deformed lips. "Shh… scars or no scars, yew are very 'andsome. Frankly, they're not as bad as yew might think. I 'ave a scar, too, and… I think I see it as worse than it actually is."

Dastardos chuckled, looking down at his wringing hands. "Ah… sorry. I don't know what to say… I never thought _anyone_ would…"

Was it Avalon's imagination, or were Dastardos' eyes welling up with tears?

"Yew don't need to talk…" Avalon murmured, her voice filled with warmth. She moved closer to Dastardos and pulled his bony body into an embrace.

Dastardos sighed and hugged her back, losing himself in Avalon's scent and warm arms.

After a few minutes, Avalon moved her lips next to his ear.

"I'll stay with yew for as long as yew want…" she whispered. "But if yew think I'm sleeping on the floor, you 'ave another thing coming."


	7. Yen's Heart

_Last night was a blur…_

Dastardos woke from a deep, nightmare-free sleep and blinked, his eyes adjusting to the darkness. He couldn't help noticing that he felt… warm. Warm and comfortable. Not like the usual hard ground he slept on. _Wait… where did this bed come from? And why are there arms around me…?_

Dastardos turned his head as far as it would go and saw Avalon's sleeping unmasked face. His heart jumpstarted and his breaths became shallow. _It… it wasn't a dream…_

Last night Dastardos did things he thought he would never do in his entire immortal existence. It was a great payoff for stealing that bed from one of the girls' guest rooms.

Dastardos slipped out of Avalon's arms and got dressed, happily humming to himself. He was trying not to think about the fact that he'd eventually have to go back home. Back to being yelled at every day, back to being beaten with shovels, back to answering to Pester…

_My father…_ Dastardos scoffed. He _couldn't_ tell Avalon about that. Not now, anyway… if she learned who fathered her new boyfriend, she'd run the other way…

_Boyfriend, huh?_ Thinking that word distracted Dastardos from his parentage. _Am I her… boyfriend? I never thought I could call myself anyone's boyfriend…_

Dastardos leaned forward and studied Avalon's sleeping face. _People don't do what we just did if they're just 'friends.' I… I can't ask her straight out, she'll laugh at me…_

He sighed and looked to the corner, where Magnar had fallen asleep facing the wall. _I think I'm gonna apologize to him. Watching Avalon sleep would just be downright creepy…_

And so, Dastardos floated over to his piñata companion and took him in his arms, doing his best to give him as much attention as possible. He did spend an awful long time ignoring Magnar last night, after all, he had to make up for lost time!

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Yen woke up with his lips throbbing.

He found that he had his arms around the Avalon poster Eddie had made, crinkling it up the slightest bit. Sighing, Yen moved out of bed and placed the drawing on his desk, the back of it against the wall so it was sitting straight up.

"I'm going to find you, Avalon…" Yen ran his thumb over the picture of her face. "I promise. We're going to be just fine…"

With a glance at his mirror, Yen noticed the paper cuts on his lips and blushed, quickly putting his mask on. He looked at his clock and saw that it was one in the afternoon. It was no wonder he slept in; he was up super late, after all. Yen changed into a clean sweatshirt, one with red patterns rather than his usually grey and black, and headed outside, hoping in vain that someone, _anyone,_ had seen his missing girl.

Yen blazed outside and saw Seedos walking by with Leena, the former with his arm around the latter, who looked awfully upset.

Yen leapt in Seedos' path and nearly gave him a heart attack.

"_Dang,_ Yen!" Seedos wheezed, trying to catch his breath. "I was ready to throw Leena at you!"  
"What?" Leena asked, raising her head and squinting at Seedos.

"Just joking," Seedos patted his girlfriend on the head and straightened up, looking Yen in the eyes. "What do you want? I'd expect Yoto to leap in my path, not _you."_

"Have either of you seen Avalon?" Yen asked, his breath short. "She's been missing for a long time now… I've been losing sleep…"

"I can tell…" Seedos leaned forward, squinting at Yen. "Even your mask's eyes are all smeary…"

"We… we haven't seen Avalon…" Leena leaned into herself, folding her arms and looking away. Yen had really been freaking her out lately… he wasn't his usual, quiet self… he was downright _insane!_ "Maybe… maybe she doesn't want to be found… she'd tell me if she was going somewhere otherwise… right, Seedos?"

Seedos looked over at Leena and saw that her eyes were shining with the threat of tears. Seedos squeaked a bit and squeezed Leena's hand in an attempt to reassure her. "She sure would. But why wouldn't she want to be found?"

Seedos and Leena said nothing, but they slowly turned their heads to look at Yen.

Yen's mask turned completely white. "Are you trying to imply you think she ran away because of _me?"_ Yen's voice cracked and he did his best to keep tears from filling his eyes. He had a reputation to uphold, after all…

"No, no, no, we're not!" Leena and Seedos backpedaled in unison.

"Tell you what, Yen," Seedos offered. "You and I go WAY back, so I'll help you out. Leena and I will help you organize a search party for Avalon! If we can't find her anywhere around the Village, then we can worry. Okay?"

"Y-yeah! We can help you!" Leena's desire to see her idol again far outweighed her fear of Yen's new attitude.

The color slowly returned to Yen's mask and he hunched over a bit with relief. "You two would really help me…?"

"Of course we will!" Seedos grinned widely and nodded, hoping that a smile would make Yen act a little less weird.

"Awesome!" Yen shoved his way in between Leena and Seedos, taking both of their arms. "Let's go get Eddie! He can use his megaphone to get everyone to the town square!" With that, Yen began to drag them along towards Eddie's mansion.

Leena and Seedos shared a glance behind Yen's back, both of them hoping that they wouldn't regret helping the lovelorn Yen.

_VPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVP_

"Please, everyone! Help us! I love her more than anything!" Yen begged the Village from his place on the town square's platform, doing his best to fight back tears. He had borrowed Eddie's megaphone to preach his feelings in hopes of swaying everyone's hearts. He knew he was at least swaying Eddie's, because tears were streaming down his cheeks with no hope of stopping.

Bart rolled his eyes and tapped on his fiancée's shoulder. "He's embarrassing himself," he growled. "His love for this woman is a bit _too_ obsessive. He's not helping the rumors that have been flying around."

"How would you feel if _I _went missing, Bart?" Gretchen looked down at her shorter beau and he blushed.

"Point taken…" Bart grumbled, folding his arms.

Yoto bit his nails from where he stood next to Storkos. If he had just told Yen that Avalon dumped him…

…no, things would be even worse. Yen would be convinced that her running away was all his fault and he would have gone completely nuts. He'd probably be taken away by creepy guys in white masks and coats, never to be seen again. As much as Yen irritated Yoto sometimes, Yoto didn't want anything bad to happen to his brother!

"We'll help you, Yen!" Storkos raised her arm, her voice heroic. "I'll fly all around the Village and the jungle; I'll even check our neighboring villages for you!"

"We'll help you find your girl," Maxime nodded up at him, leaning on the platform. "Don't sweat it."

Yen let out a sigh of relief. "You are all the _best!"_

"Avalon's a big part of the town's economy, too!" Langston's voice came from somewhere in the crowd. "If she isn't around to take care of her garden and send piñatas to Piñata Central, things could be disastrous!"

"Things are _already_ disastrous!" Yen tore at his hair and glared at where the Lickatoad's voice came from. "Not that _you'd_ understand matters of the heart, Langston."

Langston squished into a little green ball of misery.

"Don't mess with Langston, Yen," Eddie climbed up onto the stage and took his megaphone back. "Everyone already agreed to help."

Yen sighed and relaxed his shoulders. Eddie flicked on the megaphone and began dividing everyone up into groups. Yen got put with his twin brother, Sahari, and Langston. They were told to search the jungle around the outskirts of the Village. Everyone split up and that group headed into the jungle.

"Since it's a search party…" Langston reached into his candy cavity and fished around for a few moments. "I brought party hats!" He pulled out a bunch of conical hats and grinned at the group.

"It's not _that_ kind of party, Langston!" Yen tore at his hair again, clearly exasperated.

"That's cute and all, but…" Sahari made a face as she looked at the pointy headwear. "…I don't want anything that's been sitting in your stomach."

"More for me!" Yoto grabbed two party hats from Langston and stuck them both on his head in a mockery of devil horns. "Look, I'm Jardiniero!"

Sahari put a hand over her mouth to stifle her giggling.

Yen whipped around and glared at his twin, fire burning in his eyes. "How can you just stand there and wear hats?! Avalon is _missing!"_

Yoto shrugged. "I'm the comic relief. Come on, we won't find her if we're just standing around."

The four of them combed through the jungle, perhaps venturing a little too far. Eventually, they got hungry and watched in amazement as Sahari shimmied up a tree to grab them all bananas, which Yoto tinkered into various sweets.

"This can't be healthy…" Yen looked at his banana split with disdain. "Yoto, you know I'm lactose intolerant."

"Tough," Chunks of bananas foster sprayed from Yoto's mouth. "You haven't eaten in like a week, so you need some sugar in your bloodstream!"

"…I'm good," Yen pushed his bowl away.

"Aww yes! More for me!" Sahari, who had already gobbled up her meal of chocolate covered fried bananas, tore into Yen's banana split without even asking.

Langston looked forlornly at his banana, which simply had icing and sprinkles slopped over the peel. "Can't… can't I have something better?"

"Give Storkos some time off and then I'll make you all the sweets you want," Yoto smirked at Langston, flicking the little frog's party hat.

"Hmph, playing dirty, eh? I'll give her overtime just for that!" Langston pulled his clipboard out of his candy cavity and began to write something down.

Yoto grabbed Langston's clipboard and threw it as far as it would go.

Langston let out the biggest scream that the group had ever heard and went hopping off after it.

"Well, that got rid of him…" Yoto stood up, brushing bits of banana off of his shirt. "Everyone done? Let's keep looking!"

"You're a lifesaver, Yoto," Sahari sighed gratefully. "If I had to listen to that little bastard's voice for three more seconds, I probably would have thrown _him_ into the jungle."

"Stop messing around!" Yen stomped his foot. "We have to find Avalon!"

"Yeah, that's…" Yoto glanced at Sahari and figured he better not say what he was about to say. "…a thing we have to do! C'mon, everyone, allons-y!" Sweeping his arm, Yoto led the charge into the jungle, no one missing Langston's presence whatsoever.

They spent the rest of the day chasing every shadow they came across until night fell. Along the way, Sahari found a gorgeous pink flower that reminded her of a cactus blossom and Yen insisted that she put it in her hair. As Yen smoothed Sahari's unruly locks and tucked the flower safely within them, Yoto raised his eyebrows… and they rose into orbit when Sahari looked away from Yen and blushed a bit, stating the flower probably looked stupid. Yen tried to talk her into keeping it and Yoto got more and more excited by the moment.

_Wait… if Sahari broke up with Sparty… and Avalon and Yen broke up…_ A smirk spread across Yoto's mask. _Sahari could be JUST what he needs to get out of his rut!_

Later in the day, as the two of them were standing around talking during a break, Yoto made sure to spook a Sour Mallowolf and sent it barreling in their direction. Much to his delight, it smacked Sahari right on the back and sent her toppling right on top of Yen, bowling him over to the ground.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry!" Sahari's mask was beet red as she looked right into Yen's eyes. "Goddamned Sour Mallowolves… ow…"

Yen slipped out from underneath Sahari and offered her a hand. "Are you okay?" he asked, a light breeze blowing his long red hair as he looked down at Sahari with concern.

Yoto slipped behind a tree, a gremlin-like grin on his wide mouth. This was just like something out of those romance movies Storkos watched with him! He pretended to not like them to preserve his masculinity, but he secretly loved them to bits. But seeing this stuff in real life? It was practically magical! _Damn, my plan might actually work!_

"I'm fine, just got the wind knocked out of me…" Sahari's hand clasped Yen's and he pulled her to her feet. "Can we find that piñata and smash it?" Sahari mashed a fist into an open palm.

"First we need to find my girlfriend!" Yen leaned to the side and glared. "Yoto, I can see your dumb party hat horn sticking out from behind that tree. Come on, we've got work to do!"

With that, Yen marched into the forest like a knight about to save a beautiful princess.

_Oh, that's right…_ Yoto bit the tip of his gloved hand as he stepped over to Sahari. _I keep forgetting I never told him about the breakup…_

"Why do you look so sad?" Sahari asked, punching Yoto on the arm. "Avalon's your best friend! We're _totally_ gonna find her!"

_No, we're not, _Yoto almost said, but he bit his tongue really hard to keep from letting those words slip out.

The group kept searching until nightfall, venturing a bit too far into the woods. They got confronted by another Sour Mallowolf, but Sahari rugby tackled it and Yoto broke its head open with a huge stick he grabbed.

"BADASS!" Yoto high fived her, helping her off the ground. "Thanks for helping, _Yen!"_ Yoto stuck his tongue out at his brother. "Really nice way to treat a lady!"

Yen clenched his fists so hard his veins almost burst out of his skin. He whipped around, his mask purpled with rage. "All you two did all day was mess around! The only lady I care about could be _dead_ right now, and Yoto has two party hats on and Sahari is tackling dangerous piñatas!" Yen tore at his red hair, his mask turning even darker.

"Yeesh, calm down! We're sorry!" Sahari folded her arms. "Hey, someone in town could have figured out where she is, so let's go see what's going on!" Sahari ran over to Yen and pulled on his arm. Yoto gulped; she was clearly playing with fire. Yen was practically rooted to his spot.

Yen let out a long, angry breath. "I hope so… I'm so worried…"

Sahari patted his arm. "We'll find her. I promise." With that, she guided Yen out of the jungle, Yoto jogging after them.

_No we woooon't~_ Yoto sing-songed repeatedly in his head. He knew this night would end in tears no matter what. He might as well tell Yen while things were bad already… get it all over with at once. But not now. Yen and Sahari were dead set on getting to town, and Yoto couldn't exactly announce the thing about Avalon's destination without Sahari hearing it.

Especially since Yen would inevitably freak out…

Yoto swallowed his pride and picked up his pace, catching up with his brother and friend. This was going to be a trying evening…

_VPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVP_

Yen went into town with the slightest bit of hope in his heart, but those hopes were quickly dashed. He looked around at every mask in the crowd, but he didn't see Avalon's head poking up among them at all.

"Nothing…?" Yen looked at the crowd, blinking back tears.

Everyone glanced at each other, disappointed expressions on their faces.

"I'm sorry, Yen…" Eddie broke the silence, his own cheeks streaked with tear stains. "We couldn't find so much as a trace of her. We really worked hard, and we're sorry… but…"

"UGH! All of you are USELESS!" Yen stomped back home without so much as a thank you to the group of people who wasted several hours of their lives trying to find Yen's wayward girlfriend.

Everyone looked after him in stunned silence, that is, until Sahari blurted out "What an asshole!"

Yoto sighed. So much for Yen's rebound relationship…

"I'd like to apologize on behalf of my dumb brother," Yoto looked at the crowd, his brow furrowed and his hands clasped together. "Ever since Avalon disappeared, he's been, well… completely bonkers."

"No shit, Sherlock," Maxime sniggered a bit, her expression malicious. "I can't frickin' believe we wasted all this time looking for _his_ girlfriend. Why did we do this again?"  
"Because Yen's a citizen of the town and we help each other out," Eddie glared at Maxime, shaking his head. He couldn't believe the things that came out of her beautiful mouth sometimes…

"You're right…" Maxime folded her arms. "Still, he could have been more grateful."

"Yen's just stressed!" Storkos struggled to defend her boyfriend's twin. "I'm sure once he calms down, he'll apologize to all of us!"

"Bear hopes so," Bear slammed a fist into his open palm. "If Yen don't apologize for being a creep, Bear's gonna rearrange his face!"

"I'll go check on him!" Yoto offered, smiling sheepishly at the crowd. "If anyone can cheer Yen up, it's me." _After all, I have a hunch of where Avalon is… but… I don't know if it'll cheer him up at all…_

Storkos gave Yoto a glowing smile and he felt like he got stabbed in the heart. _Oh no, she's gonna have to witness my failure… please don't think any less of me, Storkos!_

"Good luck, boy," Bart gave Yoto a vaguely terrified look. "I'm not going anywhere near our house until I know for sure you defused the bomb that is Yen's temper."

"Leave it to me, Uncle Bart!" With a salute, Yoto took off towards his house and his undoubtedly fuming twin. Hopefully Yen wouldn't kill him and parade around town with his head on a stake…

"…I never thought I'd say this, but…" Eddie held up his arms. "Prayer circle for Yoto Yoa."

_VPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVPVP_

Yoto came home to find the teapot loudly whistling and Yen about to pick it up, his expression sullen and his hands shaking like crazy.

"Yen…" Yoto said gently, slowly entering the house as not to provoke his brother. He was scarier than a wild Tigermisu when he was like this…

"What?" Yen sounded snippy. He poured his tea, giving off every single body signal that he wanted to be left alone. "Can't you see I'm grieving?" Yen lifted his cup to his lips and turned away from Yoto, looking like he was ready to cry.

"Yen, what I'm about to say might be shocking…" Yoto took a deep breath, clenched his fists, squeezed his eyes shut, and blurted: "I KNOW WHERE AVALON IS!"

Yen spat his tea all over creation, dropping his cup to the ground and shattering it.

Not caring about the hot tea all over his sweatshirt, Yen flew over to Yoto, grabbed him by the shoulders, and slammed him against the wall, leaning too close to his face.

"WHERE IS SHE?! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME SOONER?! DO YOU _LIKE_ WATCHING ME FREAK OUT?!" Since Yen was so close, Yoto could clearly see he was sweating and his eyes were bloodshot. _God, Yen really HAS gone crazy…_

"No, I… I couldn't say it in front of all those people!" Yoto rapidly shook his head. "It's… it's Dastardos! She learned about our lie! She overheard you talking about it! She went after him and I have no idea where she is! I'm sorry!"

Much to Yoto's shock, Yen punched him right in the face, hard enough to crack his mask down the middle and make Yoto's nose turn into a geyser of blood.

Yoto slid to the ground, the wind knocked out of him, looking up at his brother with horror.

In that moment, Yoto saw something happen to Yen's expression. It went from pure hatred and malice to shame and regret.

"Yoto… I'm sorry… I didn't mean to hit you…" Yen was shaking now, offering his bloodied brother a hand.

Yoto slapped Yen's hand away and staggered to his feet, tossing his cracked mask aside. Yoto's nose was swollen and messed up; obviously Yen had done much more damage than he intended to do. Blood dribbled off of Yoto's chin and onto the floor.

"You're insane," Yoto shook his head, looking like he was ready to cry. "I miss when you were the thoughtful, quiet Yen that I thought would be perfect for my best friend. Now you've just… lost it."

"Yoto…" Yen's voice was starting to simmer and Yoto reflexively covered his nose, just in case Yen decided to smack him again. "How would you feel… if some asshole came out of nowhere… and took Storkos away from you? He stole her heart and you could tell she was ready to leave you behind. What would you do? What would you think of that guy?"

"I'd…" Yoto sighed. He wasn't going to lie to his brother. "I'd probably be angry. I'd go nuts. I'd want him dead. It's gross and jealous and totally a dick move, but that's what I'd do."

"That's how I feel right now," Yen tilted his chin upwards, eyeing his brother. "That's why I'm so crazy. And you come in here and tell me that she left me without saying a word… to go after that man I despise with every fiber of my being?"

"Yes…" Yoto scrubbed at his bloody nose, refusing to make eye contact with his brother. "Yen… I didn't want you to run around without any hope of finding her, okay? You need to know the truth."

"Do you know… where she went? Exactly?" Yen's expression was desperate and he grabbed Yoto by the shoulders, which made him bristle.

"No…" Yoto shook his head. "No idea."

Yen hissed through his teeth and raised his fist again, but quickly caught himself, letting Yoto go. "I… guess it can't be helped. Do you… think she's okay?"

"I hope she is. As much as you do," Yoto made his way to the kitchen counter and grabbed a paper towel, mopping his nose with it. "The best we can do is hope."

"I… I need to be alone right now," Without another world, Yen whirled around and headed back into his room.

Yoto watched him go from over his bloody paper towel, his eyes sad.

_I hope Yen doesn't do anything drastic…_ Yoto's stomach tied into a knot. _I… never thought I'd say this, but I'm worried about him…_


End file.
